Move over Simone Biles, grey whales could be the next Olympic champions. At least that’s what we can gather from a new study that captured the animals performing underwater headstands and other acrobatic moves.
The ocean gymnastics were captured as part of a seven-year project where scientists used drones to observe a pod of 200 grey whales off the coast of Oregon, Washington, northern California and southern Canada.
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New study findings published in Animal Behaviour showed that whales perform headstands by pressing their mouths against the ocean floor while searching for food. Scientists also observed whales moving like human synchronised swimmers when performing the headstand, moving their flippers in back-and-forth sweeping motions (known as ‘sculling’).
Even cuter, drone footage showed whale calves trying and failing to perform headstands, suggesting that whales learn how to do this as they mature.
“Our findings suggest that this headstanding behaviour requires strength and coordination," said Clara Bird, study author from Oregon State University.
In addition to these remarkable acrobatic manoeuvres, the drone footage also showed grey whales performing ‘bubble blasts’. These happen when the whales take one deep breath underwater and release it, creating a big circular pattern on the water’s surface.
In a second study, published in Ecology and Evolution, scientists discovered the reason for bubble bursts, finding that they help the whales to feed for longer, particularly in shallow waters.
“It is just like when we dive underwater – if we release air from our lungs, then we can stay underwater more easily without fighting the buoyancy forces that push us back toward the surface,” explained Bird.
The scientists found that larger fatter whales were most likely to bubble blast, particularly when they were performing headstands. Findings across both studies show that whale size matters when it comes to feeding behaviours.
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