Professional
photographer and polar guide, Piet van den Bemd, was flying a drone across the
dark blue waters of the Antarctic when his camera caught sight of an emerging
pattern, rising from the deep.
The
unfurling coil of light blue bubbles created a shape on the ocean surface that
looked remarkably like a Fibonacci spiral – the famous mathematical pattern
that often appears in the natural world, from plant to animal life.
Only
when the spiral was complete did van den Bemd realize what had made it.
From
the center of the pattern, rose two gigantic mouths, wide open for feeding.
They
were humpback whales.
Van
den Bemd told the news agency, Storyful, that it's a moment he will never
forget. "The Fibonacci spiral shape executed perfectly made it
incredible," he said.
For
more than thirty years researchers have recognized humpback whales use bubbles
as a form of tool. Sometimes, the bubbles are apparently used to intimidate
rivals, whereas other times, the whales blow huge 'walls' of bubbles that
confine fish and krill into ever tighter spaces.
This
latter strategy is called bubble-net feeding, and it relies on careful
cooperation between two or more humpbacks.
On
Instagram, Van den Bemd described the hunting trick as "nature's perfect
collaboration unfolds beneath the waves", and it's hard to disagree.
While
some view Fibonacci shapes in nature as the result of some deeper form of
efficiency, in cases like this the shape is merely a tight spiral, one likely
the result of well-practiced timing. Not that it makes it any less beautiful.
Bubble-net
feeding relies on whales diving deep below the surface and aiming their bubbles
upwards in synchrony. One whale is usually the lead bubble blower, while the
others swim around the fish and herd them into the temporary trap.
Once
the prey are tightly gathered, the whales open their mouths wide and start
gulping, usually charging through the eye of the spiral.
The
behavior appears to be culturally learned, but because of the elusive lives of
humpbacks, it is rarely captured on film. To date, it has mostly been cataloged
among whale populations in the Northern Hemisphere.
Citizen
scientists with drones are now changing the conversation. Their bird's-eye-view
footage is now providing scientists with a front row view of whale life like
never before.
In
the Southern Hemisphere, drones have revealed humpback whales bubble-net
feeding several times in recent years.
In
one case off the coast of eastern Australia, as many as 33 whales were seen
partaking in the hunting behavior. Because the whales were in their breeding
grounds, where it was thought they usually avoid feeding, the discovery has
scientists questioning what they know about humpback migration behaviors.
There's
still so much we don't yet understand about these highly intelligent creatures.
Some naturalists who have seen whales blow bubbles on numerous occasions think
that the behavior could even be a form of play.
Professional
photojournalist, Doug Perrine, wrote for Hakai Magazine about a time he saw a
young female humpback 'draw' a circle of bubbles in the water around her.
"There
was no food around and no other whales in sight," he recalled in the
piece.
"She
rolled to one side so that she could look upward to admire her handiwork. Was
she practicing making bubble structures that could be useful tools on the
feeding grounds, or was she just enjoying the visual beauty of the
scintillating bubble spirals?"
Maybe one day we will know the answer.
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