ENDANGERED right whales can鈥檛 get out of the way of boats because they鈥檙e too
buoyant, which may explain why they are hit so often.
A team at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in Massachusetts confirmed
anecdotal evidence that North Atlantic right whales float more than other
species. After tagging eight whales with acoustic devices and listening to 95
dives, they concluded that the animals鈥� thick layer of blubber lets them glide
to the surface from as deep as 80 metres.
鈥淥ther species get a few tens of metres below the surface and sink like
stones,鈥� says team leader Douglas Nowacek. But the right whales鈥� buoyancy also
makes them less manoeuvrable near the surface.
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The team hopes to work out a speed limit for boats that will give the whales
enough time to escape (Proceedings of the Royal Society B, vol 268, p
1811).