Deep-diving toothed whales wash up dead with stomachs full of plastic and prey alike. Their built-in sonar likely can’t tell the difference. Check out Nowacek Lab Member Dr. Greg Merrill’s research feature in National Geographic HERE. https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/article/plastic-whales-echolocation-deep-sea
Second year PhD student Greg Merrill discusses various impacts of plastic pollution in this article written for the New Security Beat, a blog for the Wilson Center’s Environmental Change and Security Program.
Lab Member Charles Muirhead coauthors a paper identifying a new population of Blue Whales! Check out the New York Times article to learn more about how the team used acoustic data to distinguish the previously unidentified population.
Check out this post to watch how the Nowacek Lab is working with the U.S. Navy to understand how varying levels of sonar exposure affect whale behavior!
