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Increased Whale Strandings Prompt Innovative Research
Saturday, August 11, 2012 6:40
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Humpbacks and High-Rises sounds like a catchy name for a group of whale-watching enthusiasts, but for this community-based organisation in one of Australia's densely populated highrise areas—Queensland's Gold Coast—their pioneering research will not only sustain an important part of the city's tourism industry, but will also directly help the whales. [Dr Olaf Meynecke, President/Chief Scientist, Humpbacks and High-Rises]: “Whale watching is a multimillion dollar industry and I think it's very important to make people aware of the fact that we share this place with other animals and that we have to take care of them as well.” For the last two decades, Australia's east coast has had an average of five whale strandings a year. But last year, 25 whales became stranded. This dramatic increase prompted Humpbacks and High-Rises to develop an innovative way of studying the health of whales as they migrate through Gold Coast waters. [Dr Olaf Meynecke, President/Chief Scientist, Humpbacks and High-Rises]: “We're planning to use drones that carry small petri dishes and then we have to fly right over the whale to collect those blow samples and then can analyse it back in the lab for hormones and hopefully bacteria and viruses.” Dr Meynecke thinks that the spike in whale strandings could be caused by insufficient food, and the organisation's pioneering research will eventually help scientists understand more. [Dr Olaf Meynecke, President/Chief Scientist, Humpbacks and High-Rises …
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2012-08-11 06:37:55
Source: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k-G9DVOj_sg&feature=youtube_gdata
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