14 September 2017 Beluga Whales: The Canary of the Sea!

Beluga whales (Delphinapterus leucas) are at the highest trophic level of the ocean food web that we’re studying here at the top of the world in the Beaufort SeaThe Beaufort Sea lies to the north of Alaska and the Yukon and Northwest Territories.. Despite not seeing any yet, I thought it was important to include a journal about these amazing animals. After all, Dr. Stafford heard from the aerial survey crew that they had seen belugas about 20 miles away from our location so we're still hoping to see some!

Beluga whales are an incredibly beautiful and unique ocean mammal. They are one of the few whales that live in the Arctic year round. They are closely related to the narwhal which also lives in the Arctic and like the narwhal and bowhead, does not migrate to warmer climates like the gray whales and humpback whales do.

Beluga Puzzle?

Belugas are one of the smallest whales that swim the oceans and are white in color, likely a camouflage adaptation for life in the Arctic. The word beluga comes from the Russian word “bielo” which means white, however when the whales are first born they’re actually a dark gray in color. It takes them approximately three to eight years for their original birth color to fade to white.

Once when my husband and I were riding on the New London Ferry, from Orient Point on Long Island to New London Connecticut, when I happened to see, what sure looked like a beluga whale, swimming close to the ferry! I told my husband, “I think I just saw a beluga whale...” The location definitely didn't make sense, and we did not see it resurface so we dismissed it as "it must have been something else..." However later that week we learned that a beluga had been identified in the area off of the Connecticut and Rhode Island coastline! Quite a beluga puzzle! What it was doing so far south, no one seemed to know!

They are very unique looking whales, which is why I recognized it so quickly. In addition to their white color they also have a large bulbous bump, called a melon, on the top of their head. The melon is flexible and capable of changing shape which provides them with one of the most expression-filled faces of any sea organism that I know of. Adding to their variety of facial features is an ability to turn their heads due to unfused vertebrae in their neck.

Another interesting feature is their ability to make a large variety of sounds. Beluga whales are known as “canaries of the sea” due to their large repertoire of social and prey related sounds that they make. They can produce whistles, chirps, squeals and clicks. To listen in to beluga whales sounds beneath the sea go to the web links at the end of this journal! Belugas use echolocation, a technique which sends sound waves traveling through the water, to locate prey. They eat Arctic cod as well as a diverse diet that can include salmon, shrimp, flounder as well as some benthic organisms! They are diverse feeders which is a great trait to have because it allows them flexibility based on whatever food is most readily available!

Beluga whales are thought to live up to approximately fifty years old. Female beluga can reproduce at four to eight years of age, and have a fourteen to fifteen month gestation period before giving birth to a single dark gray calf. Baby belugas nurse their mothers for at least twelve to eighteen months. They appear very social and usually travel in pods with other beluga whales. While beluga are at a high trophic level, they still have predators which include humans, polar bears and killer whales.

Beluga Whale Sounds Beneath the Sea!

http://www.north-slope.org/assets/images/uploads/beluga1forPWSamp.mp3

Like to hear even more ocean sounds? The following website http://www.north-slope.org/departments/wildlife-management/studies-and-research-projects/oceanography-and-sea-ice includes an interactive "Sounds of the Arctic" poster which was "put together by Catherine Berchok (National Marine Fisheries Service, NOAA) and Kate Stafford (University of Washington, Applied Physics Lab) with support from BOEM (Bureau of Ocean Energy Management) and the NSB. You can listen to the sounds of marine mammals and sea ice, sounds that were collected using hydrophones placed underwater in the Arctic Ocean. Also see the Passive Acoustic Monitoring Study."

Arctic Artwork!