While definitely not a vegetarian, I absolutely am in love with all animals. Well, most of them – snakes- freak me out, but I understand that they also have a purpose in our world. Whales and dogs are my absolute favorite animals on the planet. Both live in similar ways that we humans do. They love their offspring and care for them until they can go off on their own, but then they remain part of the family.
However loveable I know K9s are, if we compare their significance to our very existence, whales are the utmost vital being on this Earth. Unfortunately, because of trapping and keeping these marine animals in captivity, hunting for sport, or just plain killing out of fear, many whales are in danger of extinction.
Additionally, chemicals and waste cause water damage to our seas near places like Washington, where many whales live – in turn, destroy essential food sources for those marine creatures, ultimately, in the end, hurting our human food sources.
According to a report titled How Whales Help Ocean Ecosystems, the Climate and Mankind, “Whales play a vital role in providing the essential nutrient food source needed by phytoplankton. Phytoplankton form the base of the marine food chain and without it marine life cannot exist. All fish in the oceans depend on phytoplankton, whether directly or indirectly.
Phytoplankton produces most of the oxygen that we breath, more than trees and other land plants. Phytoplankton also removes most of the carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Were it not for phytoplankton, man and many other creatures would not exist,”.
Furthermore, the report went on to note that, “Whale poo, of all things, is especially rich in iron and nitrogen. Since whale faces is fairly liquid and less dense than sea water, it floats to the surface as plumes where it is readily available to the phytoplankton and innumerable organisms that rely on their nutrient plumes for survival. Whales are the primary species that fertilise phytoplankton around the oceans during their long migration routes, whilst sea currents and eddies distribute and mix the nutrients further,”.
What happens when whales go extinct?
Fair Planet explains it as a matter of fact like this, “Without a population of whales, the krill on which they feed would multiply exponentially; in turn, krill will deplete the populations of phytoplankton and algae on which they feed, causing an imbalance in the marine ecosystem. Whales also play a role in carbon capture and help regulate the planet’s climate,”.
For as long as I can remember as a little girl, I have also been fascinated with whales, specifically Orcas, but really all of them. Living in Michigan, we had a SeaWorld close by in Aurora, Ohio, on Geauga Lake that we visited several times a year.
I loved watching Shamu kiss the trainers, do tricks, and splash those of us in the audience. On Geauga Lake, they also had human entertainers who would do water skiing tricks and daredevil stunts, as well as construct a pyramid that included at least fifteen people performing water skiing feats! However, as a child, I did not fully understand that having these beautiful, enormous, and majestic creatures in captivity was harmful to their very existence.
Thankfully, SeaWorld was closed as they were not treating the marine animals and orcas well and were compromising their survival rate. Because the mothers were separated from their calves right after birth, the mama Orcas went crazy, taking it out on the trainers. As a mother, I don’t blame them one bit for going “mama bear” on them – if you mess with any animals’ babies, the parents are going to be extremely protective, doing whatever they can to save their offspring.
A report from CNN found the following about whales going extinct, “The fate of the increasingly rare North Atlantic right whale has always been left up to humans.
Once hunted nearly to extinction, their population is sharply declining again. Any hope for their survival, researchers say, demands immediate action.
A new report from Oceana, a non-profit ocean advocacy group, says unless protections are put in place, the North Atlantic right whale will die out…
There are only 400 of them left, and less than 25% of them are breeding females responsible for the species’ survival. At least 28 have died in the past two years, Oceana campaign director Whitney Webber told CNN.
It’s a sharp decline driven by fishing, boating and climate change that impacts their food supply, according to the report…
By the time whaling was banned in 1935, they were hunted nearly to extinction. Then, in recent decades, the whale found new enemies.
At least 100 right whales become entangled in vertical fishing lines every year, the report said. Fisheries use traps and pots on the bottom of the ocean with vertical lines attached to buoys so they can pull them up,”.
It is absolutely heartbreaking to see this happen because of our negligence. CNN went on to say, “A healthy ocean ecosystem translates to healthy coastal economies. Fisheries rely on the abundance of their crop, and when a link in the food chain disappears, the loss upsets the ecosystem’s balance, disrupting population sizes and the presence of natural predators and prey,”.
What happens to the ocean when a whale dies?
When a whale dies naturally, all sorts of benefits to marine life occur. The NOAA (National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration) explains the process as such, “When whales die and sink, the whale carcasses, or whale falls, provide a sudden, concentrated food source and a bonanza for organisms in the deep sea.
Different stages in the decomposition of a whale carcass support a succession of marine biological communities. Scavengers consume the soft tissue in a matter of months. Organic fragments, or detritus, enrich the sediments nearby for over a year.
The whale skeleton can support rich communities for years to decades, both as a hard substrate (or surface) for invertebrate colonization and as a source of sulfides from the decay of organic compounds of whale bones. Microbes live off of the energy released from these chemical reactions and form the basis of ecosystems for as long as the food source lasts.
At deep sea levels this forms a new food web and provides energy to support single- and multi-cell organisms and sponges, thus adding to the ocean’s food chain,”.
Efforts to protect whales from threats such as entanglement, ship strikes, and noise pollution are essential in preserving these benefits. Conservation strategies not only safeguard whale populations but also ensure the health and stability of marine environments, ultimately benefiting human societies reliant on ocean resources.
Why are whales important to humans?
In conclusion, because of whales’ complex social structures and communication skills, they are often also subjects of scientific research, offering insights into animal behavior and intelligence.
Moreover, the migratory patterns of whales influence nutrient distribution in the seas as they travel across oceans, facilitating the mixing of surface and deep-water nutrients supporting diverse marine ecosystems. This natural cycling enhances marine biodiversity, is crucial for maintaining the resilience of ocean habitats, and provides a food source for humans and animals alike, as well as vital protection for our atmosphere. So yeah, whales are extremely important to humans!