Marine Mammal Institute

PhD student Lisa Hildebrand talks to the Marine Mammal Science Podcast about her research studying the prey of gray whales.

On this episode of the Marine Mammal Science Podcast, Associate Professor Leigh Torres talks about the health and habitat of the “summer resident” gray whales.

MMI Assistant Professor Joshua Stewart is interviewed by Jefferson Public Radio in this segment about how changing Arctic conditions may be at the root of fluctuations in gray whale populations.

Angie Sremba and colleagues identified bones of humpback, blue, and fin whales near abandoned whaling stations on South Georgia Island. They found that while genetic diversity among the whales remains high, there are indications of a loss of maternal DNA lineages in the blue and humpback populations. The findings were published recently in the Journal of Heredity.

Humans’ interactions with nature have been the key to our global ecological success. But such interactions are typically one-sided — humans gain the largest benefits; nature pays the larger cost. Interactions that benefit both humans and nature are rare. Can we prevent remaining human–wildlife cooperation from turning into another human–nature conflict?

Associate Professor Kate Stafford was interviewed about a recent paper on humpback whale sightings in the Arctic. (Her interview begins at 18:59.) Sightings and acoustic detections of humpback whales have increased in the southern and central Chukchi Sea in recent years as the Arctic has been warming. Extreme sea ice retreat in fall opens further habitat to humpback whales and other temperate species. 

A new paper authored by Leigh Torres and Susanne Brander estimates that gray whales feeding off the Oregon Coast consume up to 21 million microparticles per day. Microparticle pollution is a threat to the health of gray whales, in addition to obstacles related to increased boat traffic and loss of prey.

An increase in killer whales attacking boats off Europe have some people asking, are they being playful or seeking revenge? “My personal opinion is that people do revenge, animals don’t do revenge,” said Robert Pitman, a marine ecologist.

It's the heart of harbor seal pupping season. Jim Rice, the stranding program manager for Oregon State University’s Marine Mammal Institute at the Hatfield Marine Science Center in Newport, said seal pups may come ashore and seem stranded, but they’re just waiting for their mom to retrieve them.