Study Finds Blue, Humpback Whales Spike Heart Rates to 28.2 BPM During Dives
Updated
Updated · ScienceAlert · Aug 7
Study Finds Blue, Humpback Whales Spike Heart Rates to 28.2 BPM During Dives
2 articles · Updated · ScienceAlert · Aug 7
Summary
Nine tagged whales showed that blue and humpback whales raise heart rates sharply during prey-capture lunges, despite the extreme slowing that helps conserve oxygen on deep foraging dives.
Immediately after a lunge, heart rates reached about 21.9 beats per minute in blue whales and 28.2 bpm in humpbacks, then stayed elevated before gradually falling between lunges.
Ashley Blawas's team used suction-cup tags with ECG and motion sensors on five blue whales and four humpbacks in California and the Western Antarctic Peninsula, overcoming weak signals caused by thick blubber.
One resting humpback recorded a heart rate of 18.5 bpm while "logging" at the surface, offering a rare baseline that researchers say could help track whale health, stress, prey shifts and noise pollution.