At the start of this year, we talked about the blue whale (Balaenoptera musculus). Today we wanted to dive deeper into a specific part of their giant anatomy: their heart! It’s no surprise that blue whales have huge hearts since they are one of the largest animals ever to exist. Not only are these organs huge and efficient, but they also serve an important ecological purpose even after death. A blue whale heart can be 5ft…

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This month, we decided to focus on whale watching and have prepared three posts to tell you all about it: What are good places to go whale or dolphin watching?  What are things to keep in mind? And what should you look for in a good whale watching operator? Keep reading to find out more about it. You can check out the first part of this series here that focuses on where to go and…

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In the far far north, close to the sea ice, lives a mysterious creature often called the unicorn of the sea: the narwhal. This animal owes its name to its tusk. In old Norse, the term nafarr means “auger”, which is a type of drill that resembles the narwhal’s spiraled tusk. Narwhals are quite elusive and live close to the Arctic, which means they are hard to study. Why do they have this massive tusk,…

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The hot news is literally rocking the biological world right now. Anatomical evidence suggests that female dolphins have a working clitoris, just like female humans. Let’s find out more about this incredible new research published yesterday in Current Biology. How do you even study a dolphin’s clitoris? We know so little about marine mammals and their reproductive systems. In fact, it is really hard to study such a well-hidden organ, and researchers usually have to…

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As an inevitable part of nature, death happens to all living things. Despite the certainty of it, coping with death is never easy for anyone. And by anyone, I don’t just mean humans… Some animals, including elephants, apes, and cetaceans, react unusually when a group member passes away. Could these animals be capable of experiencing grief? Could they understand a concept as abstract as death? Learn more about it in this post! Disclaimer: Some pictures…

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This month we crack into the life of sea otters as our “Whale of the Month.” Though they have a charming disposition, looks are deceiving for these feisty creatures! Sea Otter and her pup in Monterey Bay, California; photo credits Suzi Eszterhas/Minden Pictures Sea Otter vs River Otters Before we get started, what is the difference between sea otters and river otters? Well, let’s start with size: sea otters are MUCH larger than river otters.…

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This month we crack into the life of sea otters as our “Whale of the Month.” Though they have a charming disposition, looks are deceiving for these feisty creatures! Sea Otter and her pup in Monterey Bay, California; photo credits Suzi Eszterhas/Minden Pictures Sea Otter vs River Otters Before we get started, what is the difference between sea otters and river otters? Well, let’s start with size: sea otters are MUCH larger than river otters.…

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Polar oceanic water can get as cold as about –2°C! Even temperate or tropical waters might drop as low as –1°C if deep enough. This makes you think, how do marine mammals survive arctic temperatures? In this post, we’ll take the artic plunge into thermoregulation in marine mammals. What we will learn in this post – Credit: Anaïs Remili Let’s Talk Ratios: Size matters! One way that animals can reduce heat loss is by having…

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Photo-ID has been around for decades: it allowed researchers to study the marine mammal populations and opened the door to awesome whale research worldwide. So what exactly is photo-ID, why is it important, and how can you gain skills in this discipline? Find out in this post. A picture says more than a thousand words Whales and dolphins’ broad distributions, underwater lifestyles, and migration patterns make them challenging subjects to study. Populations are constantly changing;…

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Sanctuaries exist for many animal species. Generally speaking, an animal sanctuary is a place where animals are being “retired” after living in zoos or circuses. It is a place where they can live protected for the rest of their lives. For some species, this concept is nothing new. For cetaceans, however, this is fairly new territory. In this post, we explore whale sanctuaries, why they are important, and discuss two sanctuaries in particular. From Keiko…

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