RARE images showing a blue whale nursing her calf have been captured for the first time.
Birthing behavior, as well as reproductive rituals, among blue whales has been a mystery until now.
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Marine scientist Dr Karen Edyvane, from Charles Darwin University (CDU) and the Australian National University (ANU), has been researching blue whales in Timor-Leste, a small country in Asia, since 2006.
“Our decade-long research and ‘citizen science’ program has documented some of the intimate and lesser-known reproductive behaviors of blue whales, some for the first time,” she said.
“It’s very, very exciting.
“From newborn calves and nursing mothers to loving, courting adults, the waters off Timor-Leste are truly providing blue whale scientists with some of our first glimpses into the private life of one of the world’s largest but most elusive animals. .”
Underwater video of a mother pygmy blue whale and her nursing calf was captured during the Insider Divers Expedition in 2022, but only recently published.
Separate drone footage filmed in 2023 also reveals two adult pygmy whales engaged in an intimate courtship.
The narrow Ombai-Wetar Strait, which divides Timor and the islands of the archipelago, was found to be an important migration corridor for pygmy blue whales.
After nearly two decades researching the waters off Timor-Leste, also known as East Timor, Dr. Edyvane called the area an “extraordinary” location for blue whale research.
“The deep waters close to the coast of Timor-Leste, particularly in the narrow Ombai-Wetar Strait, along the country’s northern coast, provide one of the best and most accessible locations for blue whale research in the world,” he added.
“Since 2014, our program has seen more than 2,700 blue whales in Timor-Leste waters, monitoring their annual migration along the country’s northern coast.
“On a global level, these numbers are truly extraordinary.”
Until now, it was a mystery when, where and how blue whales reproduced.
Dr Elanor Bell, researcher at the Australian Antarctic Division
In 2008, the coast of Timor-Leste was identified as a “global cetacean hotspot” by Australian scientists, including Dr. Edyvane.
Cetacean is the collective noun for all 90 species of whales, dolphins and porpoises.
Dr Elanor Bell, a researcher with the Australian Antarctic Division and the Australian Government’s representative on the IWC Scientific Committee, said the images are proof that Timor-Leste is not only an important feeding ground for blue whales, but is also critical for reproduction.
“Until now, it has been a mystery when, where and how blue whales reproduce,” he added.
Facts about sex with deadly animals
Here are some shocking facts you probably didn’t know about animals that die from desire…
- If female ferrets do not have sex, they will die from aplastic anemia unless medical intervention occurs.
- Some female spiders eat male spiders after they are done mating with them because they want to use them as a form of nutrition to feed their young.
- Both male and female octopuses die shortly after mating, the male dying a few months later and the female dying shortly after the eggs hatch because she starves herself to spend all her time protecting them.
- Drone bees exist only to have sex with the queen of their hive and then die
- Female Pacific salmon die almost immediately after mating, while males survive a little longer to protect their eggs.
This story originally appeared on The-sun.com read the full story
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