On behalf of my colleagues, I am pleased to share our latest publication from the South African Bryde’s whale tagging project, now on Early View in
Conservation Science and Practice https://conbio.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/csp2.12646 Abstract Recent changes in the South African marine ecosystem and the introduction of an experimental octopus fishery have resulted in an unsustainably high rate of fatal Bryde's whale entanglements. Using suction-cup attached bio-loggers, we identified a previously undescribed feeding behavior used by Bryde's whales to catch prey, and this behavior may make them susceptible to entanglement and mortality in bottom-mounted fishing gear. As they chase down their prey, inshore Bryde's whales sprint and maneuver along the seafloor for extended periods of time, making multiple direction changes, and reaching extraordinarily high swimming speeds. These findings assisted in the implementation of mandatory changes to octopus fishing gear that have drastically reduced the number of entanglements. The novel finding that Bryde's whales use high-speed chases near the seafloor to catch their prey highlights the value of using species-specific, behavioral information for making conservation recommendations. Kindest regards, Jacopo Di Clemente - M.Sc. Marine Science PhD Fellow - University of Copenhagen, Department of Biology, Section for Ecology and Evolution, Behavioural Ecology Group - Universitetsparken 15, Building 3, 1st floor, 2100 Copenhagen East, Denmark https://www.behavioural-ecology-group.com/projects/ https://www.facebook.com/BehaVEco https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Jacopo_Di_Clemente2 https://www.linkedin.com/in/jacopo-di-clemente-78786160/ https://twitter.com/controja72
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