Uploaded July 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Beneath the surface of Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary, humpback whales are working together to capture one of the region’s smallest and most elusive fish. 🐋
A newly published study, led by sanctuary scientists, provides the first direct documentation of humpback whales cooperatively hunting along the seafloor. The whales repeatedly approach one another in coordinated formations, corralling schools of northern sand lance before opening their mouths to capture the fish at nearly the same time! Talk about teamwork. ⭐️ 🤝
👉 Learn more in our latest webstory: sanctuaries.noaa.gov/news/2026/humpback-whales-coordinate-to-hunt-along-the-seafloor.html.
📸: NOAA, under permit NMFS 18059; animation of whale behavior by Jessica Kendall-Bar; co-author of “Meet Me in the Middle: Potential Collaborative Benthic Hunting in Humpback Whales”
#EarthIsBlue #NewResearch #Whales #WhaleFeeding
Beneath the surface of Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary, humpback whales are working together to capture one of the region’s smallest and most elusive fish. 🐋
A newly published study, led by sanctuary scientists, provides the first direct documentation of humpback whales cooperatively hunting along the seafloor. The whales repeatedly approach one another in coordinated formations, corralling schools of northern sand lance before opening their mouths to capture the fish at nearly the same time! Talk about teamwork. ⭐️ 🤝
👉 Learn more in our latest webstory: sanctuaries.noaa.gov/news/2026/humpback-whales-coordinate-to-hunt-along-the-seafloor.html.
📸: NOAA, under permit NMFS 18059; animation of whale behavior by Jessica Kendall-Bar; co-author of “Meet Me in the Middle: Potential Collaborative Benthic Hunting in Humpback Whales”
#EarthIsBlue #NewResearch #Whales #WhaleFeeding
