Video shot off the coast of Boston shows how a humpback whale carcass was able to attract thousands of hungry animals to it
He is about to end up run over, his mother saves himAn incredible video shot off the coast of Boston shows how the carcass of a floating humpback whale was able to attract thousands of hungry animals (including the mysterious basking sharks) to it.
East of Boston, in the protected waters of the Stellwagen Bank sanctuary, a team of marine biologists from Massachusetts has begun an exploratory mission to survey specimens of basking shark - the second largest species of shark and one of the most mysterious predators for scientists. But as the researchers dived to begin exploration, another marine mammal caught their attention: a young humpback whale floating dead on the surface of the water.
Soon eight great white sharks appeared and raged on the humpback whale's corpse and created a 'spectacle' that the biologists themselves defined as 'unimaginable': while the predators of the sea tore open the carcass with their sharp teeth, thousands of starving seabirds flocked to the surface of the water, attracted by the smell of blood, and tried to catch floating shreds of meat - as can be seen in the video released by National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).
It is nature in action - they say the experts. - Every being dies to serve as nourishment for someone else. Nothing is wasted in nature.
Humpback whales, which can grow to the size of a school bus, sail the seas around the world - it's not uncommon to see them at latitudes as high as Stellwagen Bank in the summer season. They are absolutely harmless to humans and peaceful animals, but their survival is endangered by the navigation of large ships and fishing nets, which often end up injuring or even killing them.
According to the analyzes made by the biologists, the specimen found dead was the young son of a humpback whale already known to the authorities and nicknamed Venom; his age was about a year. Given his very young age, it is possible that he was the victim of some interaction with the world of humans. However, by the time the researchers got closer, the carcass had already been so mangled by the sharks that it was impossible to find clear indications as to the cause of its death.
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Source: NOAA
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