Blue whales dance with the wind to find food, new study shows

Study sheds new light on movements of endangered blue whales, reports Aisha Rimi

Giant blue whales can tell when the wind is changing their habitat and identify places where they can find food (Goldbogen Lab/Duke Marine Robotics and Remote Sensing Lab )

Tracking blue whales by their booming vocalisations has shown how they dance with the wind to find food.

In a new study, published in Ecology Letters, researchers explained how they used a directional hydrophone – an underwater microphone– at Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute’s (MBARI) observatory to listen for the sounds of the blue whales.

MBARI researchers used these sounds to track the movement of blue whales along California’s Central Coast and learned that they respond to changes in the wind.