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New enemy of whales is a seagull
last update: Jun 25, 2009 10:04 AM
From a "BBC news" article: Off the coast of Argentina, whales are struggling with a new enemy; seagulls. This attacking has never been seen in any other part of the world.
Seagull attack (Photo: Instituto de Conservacion de Ballenas - Argentina)
The gulls land on their backs and just peck away the skin and blubber. This attacking of whales by seagulls around the Peninsula Valdes were first noted about 35 years ago but systematic studies have only recently begun. The proportion of whales attacked annually has soared from 1% in 1974 to 78% today.
Roger Payne from the Ocean Alliance sais “You see big open sores, which we thought were pock marks of infection. Some are half a metre across and the edges look like thousands of bites."
It seems that the gulls attack mothers and calves more often than other whales. In the last survey, 80% of attacks were on mother-calf pairs in what is an important breeding ground for the endangered Southern Right whale.
Roxana Schteinbarg, director of the Instituto de Conservacion de Ballenas said that recent years have seen a big increase in the number of dead whales. She added “The mothers spend less time nursing, and we’re seeing thinner calves. For years we thought shooting [the gulls] was impossible but maybe it’s something we have to do.”
Roger Payne stated that the whales can spend a third of their time in evasive manoeuvres. “They had their last meal several months ago and won’t feed for several more months so they should be conserving their energy, but the gulls drive them crazy.”
Article:
BBC News, 24th June 2009
