Something in the blue waters of Pacific has been turning grey whales malnourished but the cause still remains an enigma. Researchers with the conservation group Earthwatch have found that whales that annually arrive to their breeding grounds on Mexican coast are highly malnourished this time. Interestingly the same incident happened in 1997/8, just prior to the El Nino event, which warmed the waters that eventually depleted whales’ food stocks. However, scientists are yet to confirm whether the same is causing malnourishment once again in grey whales or is it a part of a natural predator-prey cycle, which occurs from time to time?
William Megill, a member of the Earthwatch team said:
We’re not really sure what is going on now? But we certainly saw in Mexico this winter a very large number of starving whales. There is currently an El Nino building, and this is a worry.
Before 1940s this magnificent creature was hunt with utmost impunity, which eventually brought their number dismally low and grey whales reached the point of extinction. As a precautionary measure hunting was banned and their population started thriving once again. Today there are about 15,000-18,000 grey whales in the eastern Pacific.
To keep their tryst with their summer feeding grounds grey whales migrate all the way from waters near Seattle and Vancouver to the Arctic Bering Sea and also from their winter breeding home along Mexico’s Baja peninsula. Their journey makes them the only marine mammal of this size, which covers such a vast distance each year.
Grey whales case may just be the early warning sign of changes in the entire Pacific and changes are not very pleasant indeed. Scientists also fear this as a matter of great concern.
Source: BBC