Researchers probe scat for clues to orca decline

Using a trained dog to sniff for poop and petri dishes attached to long poles, scientists are analyzing killer whales' scat and breath samples in the hopes of solving the mystery of Puget Sound's dwindling orca population. Seven resident killer whales that frequent the inland waters of Washington went missing this year and are presumed dead, and researchers want an explanation.

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UW researchers who use a 2-liter bottle on a telescoping pole to collect whale scat for analysis have found a link between whale mortality and low levels of thyroid hormone, which partly controls metabolism. When whale deaths are up, thyroid levels are down, suggesting that the whales are starving.

The results are still preliminary and unpublished, but Sam Wasser, director of the UW Center for Conservation Biology, said they show a consistent nutritional problem.

When whales don't eat much, they draw down their fat reserves, where toxins are stored, said Katherine Ayres, a graduate student doing work under Wasser. When that happens, toxins enter the circulation system and could cause health problems, she said.

http://www.physorg.com/news149015616.html

Had to post it :evilgrin:

My first smilie also :beer:

:evilgrin:

What is aside my shit-eating grin? I'll wipe it off with Charmin.

bumble bees are disappearing. Why should the whales a pass? I'm not feeling too good myself.