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NEWSLINE PAPER,- A new study led by Griffith University finds the impact of climate change on marine animals.
The study predicts the impact of climate change in the future could disrupt the dietary patterns of cricket whales in the southern hemisphere that consume krill.
The results were obtained after researchers analyzed stable fatty acids and isotopes from fat and skin samples from five different cluster whale populations across the southern hemisphere.
The analysis was then compared to their main food, Antarctic krill.
Antarctic krill is the main food of the pack whale because it has a high fat content that is ideal to support their migratory lifestyle.
"The way of life of migratory whales requires predictable ecosystem productivity, so we can predict that the population of fish seeking food in the regions most affected by climate change is likely to show early signs of changes in the patterns of krill consumption," said Jasmin Groß, a researcher at Griffith University.
The researchers explained the characteristics of the isotope signals they found from whales seeking food in productive upwelling areas or marginal sea ice zones, suggesting that a future reduction in sea ice will occur.
While melting the ice due to rising sea temperatures can affect the ecology of this packed whale food.
Further fat and whale skin biopsies were collected from August to September 2019 in Brazil, Western and Eastern Australia, New Caledonia, and Colombia.
Meanwhile, samples of krill were collected from the whale feed site between January and March 2019.
Groß said the research could be used as a basic knowledge to assess the extent to which climate change impacts on whale food sources in future studies.
(Newsline Paper Teams)