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  • This small fish, likely a species of sardine, jumped aboard our boat when Eden’s whales were engaged in lunge feeding in the Gulf of Thailand. I believe it likely that the lunge feeding technique is suited to hunting this type of fish, perhaps due to density of aggregations and/ or behavioral characteristics. The whales appear to herd fish into ever greater concentrations before lunging through the aggregated fish. The same whales do not seem to do this with the anchovy species in the Gulf. This suggests that the whales apply different strategies for different prey.
    sardinella-prey-for-balaenoptera-ede...tif
  • This is an Eden’s whale (Balaenoptera edeni edeni) in the Gulf of Thailand herding a mass of fish, likely a species of Sardinella. While swimming in a large circle to aggregate the fish, this whale slapped the surface several times as it moved along, perhaps to concentrate the fish. This tail-slapping behavior took place most often toward the end of the herding process, with a series of slaps often followed by a sudden turn toward the inside of the circle with mouth wide open in order to side-lunge through the panicked fish. This circle and side-lunge technique has become the dominant foraging technique since 2017, replacing the open-mouth trap feeding strategy that had been prevalent since the 1990s. I believe this reflects a change of target prey. The whales adapt their foraging strategies to target species.
    balaenoptera-edeni-foraging-strategy...tif
  • This is a young Eden’s whale (Balaenoptera edeni edeni) in the Gulf of Thailand side-lunging through a mass of fish, likely Sardinella sp., that this whale and its mother had aggregated by swimming in a large circle. This circle and side-lunge technique has become the dominant foraging technique since 2017, replacing the open-mouth trap feeding strategy that had been prevalent since the 1990s. I believe this reflects a change of target prey. The whales adapt their foraging strategies to target species.
    balaenoptera-edeni-side-lunge-feedin...tif
  • The is an adult female Eden’s whale (Balaenoptera edeni) engaged in lunge-feeding behavior with her calf. The mother is on the left side of the image. The pair swam in a large circle to herd fish (likely Sardinella sp.), slapping the ocean surface once in a while presumably to drive the fish forward. When there are are enough fish swimming inside the arc created by the whales, they execute a quick turn so that their mouths open directly into the line of motion, thereby capturing a large mouthful of fish. The crest of the wave created by the arc of the whales’ rapid turn is visible behind them. Several species of terns take advantage of the whales’ efforts. This lunge-feeding behavior began to appear in the Gulf of Thailand in 2017 and has been the dominant feeding methodology during 2018.
    eden-whale-balaenoptera-edeni-lunge-...tif
  • This is a young Eden’s whale (Balaenoptera edeni edeni) in the Gulf of Thailand side-lunging through a mass of fish, likely Sardinella sp., that this whale and its mother had aggregated by swimming in a large circle. This circle and side-lunge technique has become the dominant foraging technique since 2017, replacing the open-mouth trap feeding strategy that had been prevalent since the 1990s. I believe this reflects a change of target prey. The whales adapt their foraging strategies to target species.
    balaenoptera-edeni-side-lunge-feedin...tif
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Tony Wu Underwater Photography

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