Uploaded December 2021 | Updated September 2026, 1 hour ago
An unlikely ally in the fight against climate change can be found in the oceans - whales! Large whales like humpbacks, right whales and fin whales store carbon in their bodies at a rate equivalent to around 30,000 trees! And wherever whales go they poop, providing nutrients for the growth of phytoplankton, microscopic marine algae that form the base of the ocean food web. These phytoplankton in turn absorb about 40 per cent of the world's carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas that contributes to climate change. Visit oceana.ca/en/marine-life-encyclopedia to learn more about marine animals in Canada.
An unlikely ally in the fight against climate change can be found in the oceans - whales! Large whales like humpbacks, right whales and fin whales store carbon in their bodies at a rate equivalent to around 30,000 trees! And wherever whales go they poop, providing nutrients for the growth of phytoplankton, microscopic marine algae that form the base of the ocean food web. These phytoplankton in turn absorb about 40 per cent of the world's carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas that contributes to climate change. Visit oceana.ca/en/marine-life-encyclopedia to learn more about marine animals in Canada.
