Scientists: Toxic metals threaten whales
Scientists: Toxic metals threaten whales
USAToday.com, June 2010
Heavy metals from pollution threaten sperm whales with extinction
Heavy metals from pollution threaten sperm whales with extinction
Sydney Morning Herald, June 2010
Calmer Seas, AC Working again, Many Dolphins: ODYSSEY Gulf Blog, Day 6, July 23, 2010
Finally, a calm night and relatively calm seas all day. Still not a sleep through the night type of night as the ac went off and no one realized until I showed up to sleep in the pilot house, as my cabin was 90 degrees. Johnny had preceded me up and was sleeping in the salon and Kellie was right behind me for space in the pilot house. Bob quickly had the ac restored and we all headed back to our cabins which cooled to 75. We are happy with 75. But we had a reasonable night sleep anyway.
No whales today. Could not see any blows anywhere. But there were dolphins, lots and lots of dolphins. Okay so technically there were whales since, scientifically, dolphins are actually whales, but none of the kind we are seeking. You could hear them whistle on the acoustic array and then they would make a beeline for the bow and bow ride. The entire crew would race to the bow and watch over the side as the dolphins would roll and tumble and porpoise with the boat. I have never seen Matt move so fast and be as animatedly excited as he was each time a new group of dolphins would arrive. Peals of delight and really, truly it was cool to watch them. We are unsure of the species , but certainly there were some bottlenose dolphins and some Atlantic spotted dolphins though the taxonomy books indicated that there is a lot of confusion when it comes to identifying spotted dolphins.
Kellie and Matt were felling better so they resumed watches on the mid-level mast station. Vicki and Rick also took turns up there and it was so nice most did not want to come down after their hour was up. Plus the view of the dolphins was remarkable. Rick managed to fix the top step so tomorrow Cathy can go up and we will resume our normal rotations. Hopefully, we will also start helm rotations which will begin with Cathy and me.
So there was opportunity for writing and I worked on Amie and Sandy’s papers and on the Center proposal. Bob and I discussed the Gulf route and decided on Mobile, Alabama, as our home port and not New Orleans, as it is quicker in and quicker out. Once we have the Deep Horizon coordinates we will pick a second hope port to explore the area of the Gulf near Texas as Mobile is too far east to use when it’s time to explore the western Gulf.
It was a peaceful day which was good to have and the dolphins sprinkled in a bunch of fun.
Kyle made his first lasagna which the crew loved. Thanks to his mom for the advice.
Tonight we are off Cape Hatteras with a strong headwind and current slowing our progress to a crawl. There are reports of thunderstorms so we are anticipating a rough one.
No cell growth yet. But we are hoping. The microscope is a particular challenge as there is no known area of cell attachment so it’s hard to find the plane of focus plus the boat rocks, causing the focus to drift and the stage to move, so it takes too long for us to get a rough look at one area. We may not know anything until we are at dock in Florida and can look at the cells better. Some maybe areas, but really hard to say as it would look like something, and then the focus would drift and Cathy and I would be tossed a bit and let our hold on the stage and the flask slip just a smidge which of course, on a microscope, changes everything.
It’s the one thing about a boat. You do gain sea legs, and you do stop being seasick, and you may even get better at sea typing. But there is always a jolt coming that tosses you some.
Hope all is well there.
John
(Blog by: John Wise, Science Director)
Nearing Maryland, Seasickness Sets In: ODYSSEY Gulf Blog, Day 5, July 22, 2010
Another night of rough water and not much sleep. This one was different as it felt as if the boat changed based on which crew member was driving. We all chuckle on how much exercise we get each day just trying to stay still in our bunks.
I let everyone sleep in and at 8 am we had our team meeting. It was planned to be a meeting of the whole team (boat crew and science crew), but it was clear when I woke up at 6 am, it had been a rough night for the crew as they were all sleeping around the pilot house and the salon. I waited on the aft deck for the students and Kyle our cook came out and we chatted for a while. It was a glorious morning with beautiful blue skies and that midnight blue ocean with the crisp white whitecaps punctuated by 8 foot rolling swells. Kyle has generally kept to himself so far hanging out in his bunk when he is not cooking or spotting whales. Nevertheless, he assured me he is having an amazing time and described the remarkable views from the mid-level platform when whales are near. We also noted how we are so cut-off from civilization out here; we could be the only 10 people left on the planet and not know it–save for the occasional comment by unseen boats over the radio.
Johnny arrived first about a half hour early. He too told me he was thrilled with the experience though, of course with him it’s always self-evident by the broad grin on his face. We agreed that the work is difficult and the daily grind really tests your mental strength, particularly with the exceptional heat and lack of sleep we endure each day. But the experience is remarkable.
By 8 am, all of the students arrived and we began our review of the various stations. About halfway through the boat crew were all awake and joined us so we started at the beginning and had our first full team meeting since Iain left. We went through what worked and what did not and I reminded them all to drink more water, wear sunscreen and I also made a rule of no reading or napping on deck in sunny weather. Already, with watches and pursuing whales, they were getting 8-9 hours of intense sun. Then we dispersed to our stations and the work began.
Rather quickly, it was apparent that with the 8 foot swells Kellie and Matt were again experiencing seasickness and we were unable to man the mid-level platform. Compounding this problem, was the fact that the top rung in climbing to the mid-level platform had broken, making the final step too big for Cathy to ascend to it either. One of the crew was also seasick and one had to man the helm and we were quickly looking at too few people to occupy the roost. Our acoustic array is also down for reasons we are unsure of at this point. Combined, these problems severely limit our ability to find whales, though Matt, Cathy and Kellie did man the lowest level platform above the pilothouse, which just has lower visibility. Combined with the 8 foot swells and numerous whitecaps, I doubted we would see much.
Johnny did a yeoman’s turn in the mid-level platform, two hours of searching, standing the entire team scanning with binoculars. Captain Bob, who was on a rotation of no helm duty decided to take a turn aloft and relieve Johnny. After an hour, Johnny relieved him, for what would be another 2 hour turn. The sun was glaring hot and beating down on the deck with no shade to be found anywhere. Bob informed me that the mid-level platform was of limited use because one had to sit and hang on to handle the swells and it was hard to see with all the whitecaps. I looked up and there was Johnny still standing and scanning. This watch would be the last one of the day and we would have to hope the lowest level platform would yield some evidence of whales. Feeling totally exhausted myself, with no escape from the heat, I figured a brief nap would help.
I had just started to slip into a doze, when Matt came down–a whale at 1 O’clock off the starboard bow. In a daze I got up and headed for the pilot house. Bob and Kyle emerged too, both similarly groggy from almost falling asleep. A second person confirmed the blow and within minutes all were at their stations scanning for the whale. Suddenly, Bob noticed an unexpected thing; the acoustic array was picking up sperm whales who were clicking so loudly we could hear them across the pilot house without even donning the headphones. Sure enough Johnny had spotted our first sperm whale. Unfortunately, it dove before we could get close enough. The problem is that when sperm whales dive, they go down for an hour or so and you have no idea where they will come up. The array could have helped, but while I was able to optimize the array for the sperm whale sounds, I could not get the software to run. It kept crashing and it is the software that provides the directionality to the sounds. The other challenge is that sperm whales click while underwater but are silent at the surface. We spent three hours pursuing whale blows and in most instances they dove before we could get close enough. There were a couple of calves that we did get within range of, but the smaller size and speed of them coupled with the 8 foot swells jarring Johnny and Rick in the bow, made it so the couple of attempts they each took missed.
We could not find many adults–they clearly we gorging themselves on squid at depth given the clicking on the hydrophone array. After three hours in the hot sun, I reluctantly called a halt to the search. It was almost 6 pm and we just were not finding the whales we should. We have traversed a 3 miles radius and just not found them near us. Looking around, everyone was melting and after a brief discussion with Bob, we decided the swells had died down sufficiently and a swim was in order.
We lowered the swim platform and I was the first one in. We were 80 miles offshore of Maryland in 4,500 foot deep water (no I could not touch bottom) and the water was 72 degrees. Given the heat of the day, it was bliss for all of us (Bob did not go in). In case you are wondering, sperm whales feed at depth, not at the surface, and there are no known cases of sperm whales attacking humans. Kellie tried her best squid impression but alas attracted no whales, though she will now be forever known as Kellie “squid” Joyce. The swim buoyed everyone’s spirits and restored our energy. We all hopped in the boat and ate dinner.
We called Iain and learned that CNN would try to call us on the satellite phone. We also learned that he asked KVH for a $60,000 airtime donation that would give us full internet and phone access plus the ability to send video. We also called Chris Gianios to start him on the search for what is off in the acoustic array software. Chris will sort out the problem with our partner Jonathan Gordon in Scotland and we eagerly await Chris joining us on the next leg of the journey.
All in all, though it yielded no samples we felt it a good day.
John
(Blog by: John Wise, Science Director)
Computer model predicts spread of BP oil spill over one year
Computer model predicts spread of BP oil spill over one year
University of Hawaii, Manoa, via gizmag.com
Hudson Canyon, Rough Waters, Sampling Fin Whales: ODYSSEY Gulf Blog, Day 4, July 21, 2010
Shortly after I wrote on Day 3, we lost all cell, internet and 3G signal. We knew then, for practical purposes, we were cut off from the real world though the boat would speak with Iain each day via satellite phone.
We are along the Hudson Canyon drop-off with 400 feet deep of water on one side of us and 4,000 feet on the other side.
On day 4, exhaustion hit us, all of us. Last night was a rough one with the biggest swells yet. No one slept much as they rolled around like soda cans on an every shifting skateboard. Superimposed on that was long days, hot weather and little appetite. We were struggling through the morning when Johnny called out from the mast “whale blow at 1 O’clock”. That launched everyone into high gear and the exhaustion slipped from our minds. Everyone scrambled to their stations, Kyle to the mast station, Johnny to the foremost point of the bow, Rick shortly behind him. Kellie is in the bow area ready to take the Photo ID with Eric nearby to record the data. Bob was in the Captain’s chair. Vicki and Cathy were atop the pilot house. Matt was preparing the darts and grabbing the net. Me, I was alongside the port side of the pilot house–everyone scanning for the whales.
As he stood in the bow, Johnny yelled back to me that he just saw a hammerhead shark off the bow. Hammerheads are one of five shark species known to attack humans. That raised my stress level some as I figured this moment would be the one where Johnny fell in. I am pleased to report he did not. The first attempt at the whale was from Rick and the whale was too far off so the dart missed. We then retrieved the dart and looked for the whales again.
We found them in short order. Three fin whales, reputed to be hard to biopsy because of their speed. The whales surfaced immediately adjacent to the bow. Johnny fired and Matt and I began the frantic search for the arrow in the water, unsure if it was a hit or not. Peals of laughter came from the bow, but we could not see the arrow anywhere. It turned out the arrow bounced off the whale, sample inside, and straight back into the boat. The dart tip was passed to Cathy who immediately began the culturing process.
Next up was whale two. Johnny and Rick alternated places and the whale was on the starboard side. Again, a clean hit and a nice sample and we had two whale samples. By then the third whale has swum off and it was back to the watch. Kellie ascended the mast. Cathy continued with the processing of now two whale tissues. Matt and Johnny collected water samples and tried once again for krill–no luck
By dark, everyone was once again exhausted, now further drained by a day in the fresh air and sun. I cancelled the early morning watches and called for an 8 am meeting to review progress. In that meeting, I will remind them to drink more water, wear more sunscreen and spend more time out of the sun.
There were a few remarkable moments in addition to the three hours spent focused on sampling the three fin whales and, of course, the hammerhead sharks. There were two different large groups of dolphins that swam by. There were these elegant blue fish that swam right up to the boat. We thought they might be dinner but alas we didn’t catch any. And then there is the water. It is such a beautiful midnight blue–just marvelous, punctuated with brilliant clean white splashes from the boat and the animals in it. Truly a delight to behold.
Today is also my 20th wedding anniversary – Happy Anniversary Sandy! Here’s to 20 more! We’ll get to celebrate this one eventually.
John
(Blog by: John Wise, Science Director)
Sailing into NYC: ODYSSEY Gulf Blog, Day 3, July 20, 2010
Day 3 is hard to describe. It started out with a morning of sailing into New York City, ultimately stopping at South Street seaport though we did not dock. Iain got in the zodiac and was dropped off. As we sailed into New York we went under the bridges we often drive over. The Triboro Bridge, the Throgs Neck Bridge, the Queensboro bridge and each time you would swear the mast would not make it and each time it cleared by 30 or more feet. We were one of only a few boats on the water and it was remarkable to think that 50 years ago or so this would have been a bustling route. The shore was a complicated mix of famous buildings, expensive condos, dilapidated buildings and industry. We passed Rikers Island, where I suggested to Iain we might drop him off. He readily agreed until he realized what it was. Vicki noted that my shirt and shorts caused me to match the floating prison and could not help but shoot a few photos. The science team huddled together on the bow squeezed into the furthest point forward. Hopefully, James posted some photos of them on our “A Race to Save Our Oceans” Facebook page.
With our training done, it was time to say goodbye to Iain. We dropped him off at South Street Seaport and headed down towards Lady Liberty. We will miss Iain as he is always excellent company (though no one should tell him I said so). He left us with a clear mission and clear understanding of the trials and tribulations ahead. Lady Liberty was spectacular. Beautiful as always. I think I will leave that there.
Next, up was a stop in New Jersey. We needed some propane for our stove/oven and were running low. So we anchored near a marina and sent Vicki and Rick in to get it. We also took that opportunity to send them in with our trash (as that really accumulates on a boat) and with a request for additional foodstuffs, as we will not see land for another 10 days. That took a while and it was hot.
Captain Bob took advantage of the time to perform routine maintenance on the engine. Eric (last name Carr by the way) caught up on some odds and ends like finishing fixing a few of the lee cloths. These are canvas clothes that keep us from rolling out of bed in rough weather. They affix to the ceiling and then you unhook them when you wake up. Kyle cooked. 7 boxes of macaroni and cheese to make dinner, an experiment to figure out what was needed to feed this hungry crew.
The science team caught up on odds and ends too. Johnny and Cathy affixed the cell platforms to the incubator shelves as we are anticipating much rougher seas and don’t want them falling out. Matt prepped biopsy samples, some of which we sent with Iain. Kellie prepared duty rosters. They also took some time to relax and read, as tomorrow the sunrise to sunset watches return for 10 straight days. Me–I spent time writing and catching up on email, phone calls and planning, etc. There seem to be puzzles and challenges for me each day.
The water quality off New Jersey was quite disappointing, brown. There were lots of jellyfish and terns flying around (the jellyfish of course were floating). I decided we should start recording all the wildlife we see to make our trackline map more interesting for folks to read. I am now working on those data sheets. I ate dinner on the aft deck. Captain Bob, Engineer Rick and Cathy joined me. Bob is quite the conversationalist and we chatted about a number of things. The food was simple but good. Kyle does a good job and puts a lot of TLC into it, which we all appreciate.
Then, it was time to go. For experience, we hauled the anchor as a team by hand. Quite heavy I must say. But we all heaved and hoed, and up it came with some struggle. Off we went, headed for the Atlantic . Then, Captain Bob presented me with a decision to make. Do we sail along the NJ coast and then cut over to deep water or do we head for deep water and go to deep water and head down. I chose to head for deep water so we will head out to the Hudson Canyon dropoff and head south from there. I chose this route as we have never been there and since the whale are rarely seen off NJ, perhaps they are there. Plus it’s just my nature to try the untried direction. We should be out there at daybreak–just in time to start the watches.
Before I left I thought today would be the beginning of the time for me to settle in. It is clear to me now that I will not be settled until the voyage is done. In addition to the myriad of decisions I must make each day both big and small, the Gulf weighs heavily on my mind. I find myself thinking through all possible variables, checking and rechecking protocols and equipment, trying to imagine all of the hurdles the oil and the heat will present. I know I cannot discern all of the challenges until we get there, but the safety of my team (and I include the Captain and crew in this comment) and the safety of the ship are my constant worry.
The Gulf also weighs on my mind because of the devastation this crisis will cause. I am still stunned about what we as a society have done to ourselves and our ecosystem. I am dismayed that so many consider it just another accident and call for the resumption of oil drilling while still others exclaim that it is only oil and what is the big deal. At times I wonder if I am missing something, and yet I can find no flaw in my logic–the crisis is real and the consequences severe. I am proud that we, all of us, are able to do our part and tell the story of the Gulf crisis from the whales’ point of view and what it is doing to their cells and their DNA. At least then maybe we will learn some lessons.
John
(Blog by: John Wise, Science Director)
Preparing the Onboard Laboratory: ODYSSEY Gulf Blog, Day 2, July 19, 2010
I am not promising to write every day, but enough expressed interest and I am sure day 1 left you hanging about what was next. I am assured that many days will be filled with eager searching for whales but no luck. Indeed, today we saw no whales but that was part no whales, part weather and part location. Today we travelled from Massachusetts to NY. Iain will get off in NY as the training sessions are now complete. Early on we ran the watches from 5:30 until 10:30 but then a fast moving thunderstorm approached and I pulled Johnny down from the mast to avoid the approaching storm. For the rest of the day we were beset by one storm or another until we reached well into Long Island sound where there aren’t any whales.
So the day was spent preparing the lab for when we do see whales and adjusting the lab to the rocky waves. The waves were quite large and Captain Bob assures us that we have seen nothing yet. The North Atlantic Ocean is known to be an angry ocean and tomorrow after we say goodbye to Iain and sail past Lady Liberty we will head into the Atlantic and look for sperm whales. The sperm whales will be 50-100 miles offshore and we will track them both visually and acoustically. We likely will not see them until North Carolina, leaving plenty of time for practice.
We are also acquiring new skills as Captain Bob will be teaching us to run the helm during some day shifts. Cathy has already talked to Bob about training to be a Captain and she will be officially logging hours as one needs to have 365 sea days to qualify. I am sure others will seek the same possibility. There is little seasickness now and everyone is close to having sea legs. About the only interesting biology we saw were little jellyfish littering Long Island sound. That and marveling at the lightning. Iain was also live on NPR from the boat. So an ordinary day preparing for whales and riding through thunderstorms.
We will see what the Atlantic brings. We think we have everything strapped down, but it will be weird to see no land for days. Target is Fort Lauderdale arriving about July 30.
We have no idea if we will have a 3G connection so no idea if we will be able to communicate between now and then. But Sandy has Iain’s number and he will be in daily contact via satellite phone. We certainly hope he finds the funds for the monthly satellite service so we can be in daily contact will all of you. It’s expensive ($6,000 a month) but I have confidence in Iain’s fundraising ability and I know it is something he is eager to achieve.
I must say even though it lack the excitement of yesterday, today was no less exhausting.
John
(Blog by: John Wise, Science Director)
Successful Whale Biopsies! ODYSSEY Gulf BLOG, Day 1, July 18, 2010
As I write this note, we are passing Martha’s Vineyard. The Atlantic is throwing up some LARGE swells so please excuse any typos. Plus it”s sunny here in the pilothouse, so hard to see. It’s a pleasant morning, relatively cool although my cabin is 85 degrees. Still have not quite solved the ac challenge there.
Yesterday, was a highly successful day. We sampled 6 whales, water, and attempted fish and krill. We also all learned that the work is long and hard with fluctuating periods of intense work. Our days start at 5:30 am when the first student climbs to the mid-level platform. Yesterday it was Cathy. This platform is halfway up the main mast and when the boat rocks- it really rocks up there. Johnny is up there now in these huge swells. This platform is manned from dawn to dusk in 1 hour shifts. So basically our four students rotate going up there every hour for a 14 hour day. When not on watch, there are data logs to keep, a lab to maintain and other duties that occupy much time. The purpose of being on the watch is to scan for whale blows on the horizon.
When a whale is spotted, like yesterday, the intense work really begins. All hands come on deck, the cook ascends to the platform to relieve the student and everyone goes to their station and watches for the whales. The whales spend time at the surface punctuated with periodic dives. When they dive you have no idea where they are so you anxiously scan the water looking for them to resurface. When the whale is close, the dart is fired and the arrow bounces off and into the water. That event happens so quickly that if you blink you have missed it. Yesterday, Johnny biopsied two whales. Next, is the collection of the arrow; one of two things happen, we are able to scoop it rapidly (remember the boat is moving so it is moments before we are alongside the arrow) or a life ring is tossed to mark its approximate locations. Matt has been in charge of the arrow retrieval and did a fine job. Simultaneously, with the arrow retrieval is the photo id. The goal is to get a photo of the full tail fluke. Thus, the photographer must block out the frenetic energy of the arrow retrieval and focus on the whale–getting some dorsal pictures and pictures of the tail. Kellie was the photo id person yesterday and I think we have ids on all of them. Meanwhile, an arrow is retrieved and handed to the cell culturist who removes the sample from the dart tip, takes it down into the lab and processes it. Cathy is the cell culturist and got all of the biopsies save one that was skin-only into culture. Of course working hand in hand with us is the crew. The captain is bringing us alongside the whales. One crew member is recording data another is the second biopsier and a third is taking pictures of the activity and acting as photo id backup. And me? I am taking some pictures as moments allow, adjusting the activities as need to be and filling in wherever needed.
All of that sounds straightforward, I imagine, and when we sampled the first whale it was. But then came the second round. 5 whales adjacent to the boat and we make every effort to not sample the same whale twice. So now there is an arrow fired by the first biopsier, and then another by the second biopsier and everything goes into motion and the pace becomes truly frenetic and the arrow retriever is trying to get the arrows. One photo-IDer is trying to get the photos and the second is trying to guide the biopsier as to which whales to avoid. The biopsiers are working with the captain to try and align the boat for the next sample and the data recorder is writing as fast as possible. The cell culturist for the course now has her work doubled, but no extra time. Once all is done, it’s back to the watches and scanning for other whales. SO you can see long watches punctuated by intense periods. We ended our day at about 10 pm when all was said and done. Our science team meeting which reviewed the day, was at 9 pm as we watched the last traces of the sun sink into the ocean. Most fittingly, it was an orange sunset. Johnny, Matt and Kellie had the view of the day as they saw a full whale breech right in front of the sunset on the horizon.
The team really worked well and worked hard. We are hoping that Cathy will be the first person in history to successfully culture a cell line on board a sailing vessel at sea and maybe in any vessel at sea. We are also hoping that she is the first to culture a humpback cell line. We shall see. We do need to give an extra tip of the cap to Cathy as while the rest of us were above board in the sun and sea air and working, but also enjoying the view of whales near the boat and breaching and playing, Cathy was in the lab (80 degrees) carefully processing the samples and missing the sights. She did see whales and she did get some pictures, but she also sacrificed many views and cooler weather to make this effort work. So kudos to her for doing so without a complaint and, really, kudos to the whole team for working so hard and so well.
Let’s hope those cells grow and history is made. Today is day 2 and we are up at 5:30an rolling with these crazy swells. Iain is at the helm and so I keep teasing him that he needs to learn to drive, but, seriously, he is doing well on very rolling water. No one appears to be seasick anymore. Kellie is now ascending the mast to relieve Johnny.
Already has been truly a remarkable experience.
More when I can.
John
(Blog by: John Wise, Science Director)