Antarctic whale 'acrobatics' revealed in drone footage

Aerial footage of humpback whales shows how efficiently they can twist and turn their huge bodies.

British Broadcasting CorporationWatchRegisterSign InHomeNewsSportBusinessInnovationCultureTravelEarthVideoLiveHomeNewsIsrael-Gaza WarWar in UkraineUK General ElectionUS & CanadaUKUK PoliticsEnglandN. IrelandN. Ireland PoliticsScotlandScotland PoliticsWalesWales PoliticsAfricaAsiaChinaIndiaAustraliaEuropeLatin AmericaMiddle EastIn PicturesBBC VerifySportBusinessFuture of BusinessTechnology of BusinessWork CultureInnovationTechnologyScience & HealthArtificial IntelligenceCultureFilm & TVMusicArt & DesignStyleBooksEntertainment NewsTravelDestinationsAfricaAntarcticaAsiaAustralia and PacificCaribbean & BermudaCentral AmericaEuropeMiddle EastNorth AmericaSouth AmericaWorld’s TableCulture & ExperiencesAdventuresThe SpeciaListEarthNatural WondersWeather & ScienceClimate SolutionsSustainable BusinessGreen LivingVideoLiveLive NewsLive SportHomeNewsSportBusinessInnovationCultureTravelEarthVideoLiveAudioWeatherNewslettersDrones reveal Antarctic whale 'acrobatics'14 hours agoBy Victoria Gill, @vic_gill, Science correspondentShareA humpback whale shows its 'acrobatic' skill as it creates a bubble net to trap krillFootage of humpback whales captured by drones has revealed how the animals manoeuvre their whole bodies when they feed.

As BBC News filmed with scientists in the Antarctic Peninsula, one whale used its four-metre-long fin to sweep a net of bubbles around its prey and trap them, known as "bubble-netting".

"The flick of that of that flipper really shows how adaptable, how creative, these animals can be," said Dr Ari Friedlaender from the University of California Santa Cruz.

Humpbacks are "much more acrobatic" than other similarly sized whales, Dr Friedlaender said.

The wildlife charity WWF’s global whales expert, Chris Johnson, said the solo whale we watched "bubble-netting" was "using its fin as a tool" to trap krill, the tiny crustaceans that Antarctic whales eat more than one tonne of each day.

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cjjj8v77zz5o

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