New Population of Blue Whales in Western Indian Ocean

The scientists have recently found evidence that there exists a new population of Blue Whale in the Western Indian Ocean. This population is being discovered for the first time.

Echolocation

Whales produce low frequency sounds. These sounds are in the audible range of Humans. However, humans can hear only part of the sounds. The whales produce these sounds for food and navigation in the water. This is called Echolocation. The new population of whales has been discovered based on Echolocation.

How was the new Whale Population discovered?

The Whales emit sounds and based on the echo received they track their prey in water. These sounds are usually referred to Whale songs and are low-pitched and recognisable. Every Blue Whale Population has its own song.

The scientists recently analysed the recordings from the Arabian Sea coast of Oman till Madagascar. During the analysis, they have discovered a new Blue Whale song that has never been described. Based on this, the scientists have concluded that they have discovered a new population of Blue Whales in the Indian Ocean.

Blue Whale

The Blue Whale was once abundant in all the oceans of the earth. However, due to hunting they almost reached to extinction. The International Whaling Commission banned Blue Whale hunting in 1967. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species lists Blue Whale as “Endangered species”. It is listed under Appendix I of the Convention of International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora.

International Whaling Commission

It is an international body that was set up by the International Convention for the Regulation of Whaling. The International Convention for the Regulation of Whaling was signed in Washington D.C. The main duty of International Whaling Commission is to keep whaling under control. Under Florianopolis Declaration, the International Whaling Commission began conservation of Whales and also decided to recover whale population to pre-industrial levels. India is a member of International Whaling Commission.

Month: Current Affairs - December, 2020