Incredible, Rare Underwater Footage Shows Whales Using Bubble 'Nets' to Hunt

[Judi Lynn]

(University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa/Permit Number: NOAA #19703)

NATURE


MICHELLE STARR 15 OCT 2019

Did you know some cetaceans use "nets" to catch their food? Like humpback whales. They'll dive down and swim in a ring around their prey, blowing out bubbles as they go.

That rising ring forms a column that traps fish, allowing other whales in the group to swim up from below, mouths agape, through the bubble cylinder to feast.

It's an absolutely fascinating and beautiful thing to watch - and scientists have caught it on camera in a rare whale's-eye view.

In addition to drone footage showing a stunning overhead view of a pair of humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) creating the bubble nets, marine biologists at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa stuck cameras and sensors on whales using suction cups to collect a wealth of data on the fascinating behaviour.

More:
https://www.sciencealert.com/check-out-this-amazing-video-of-whales-using-bubbles-to-hunt

[Karadeniz]

1. The more we learn, the smarter it turns out animals are! Thanks!

[Brother Buzz]

2. That is really cool footage! We've known about the bubble nets for, like, forever...

but never really knew and understood the mechanics of how they did it.

I wonder if the Humpback whales circle in the opposite direction south of the equator.

[DFW]

3. I've watched them do that

Off the coast of the tip of Cape Cod. It is an unforgettable thing to see up close:
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The North Atlantic humpbacks will often splash their tails to create the bubbles, then dive, and then come up in the middle with their mouths open to catch the fish. They then push the water out through the baleen with their tongues, and swallow the fish. The seabirds know what is coming, and fly close so as to catch fish that escape the whales' open mouths.

[world wide wally]

4. I saw that in Cape Cod too

The birds flying into the whale's mouth and picking fish out was equally awesome. I thought they were Minke whales.

[blaze]

5. I've seen it!!!!

My one and only cruise... on a small (62 passenger) ship in SE Alaska. So amazing to watch!

[LastLiberal in PalmSprings]

6. The closer you get, the more interesting it is.

"You're going to have to clean out that wet suit."