Cetaceans are “sentinel” species that serve as indicators of ocean health. A dead and stranded whale, dolphin or porpoise is chock full of information about our oceans and the complex web of life and chemistry that drives oceanic health.
When the right people study stranded cetaceans, valuable and useful information is gained, which helps us make better decisions about how we can be a more positive influence on the health of our marine flora and fauna and, ultimately, live healthier lives ourselves.
It was eye-opening and totally impressive to listen to a presentation by Michelle Berman Kowalewski, executive director of the Channel Islands Cetacean Research Unit (CICRU). She and her team are the ones who show up, suit up and delve into the remains of stranded and dead cetaceans. It can be a nose-offending task (the rotting body cavity can literally explode all over the researcher), but the rewards are amazing.
“I am always trying to spread the word on how much information we can get from these animals and how their health has direct human health implications,” Kowalewski said.
When cutting into a stranded carcass, Michelle is looking for a number of health factors, including disease; human-produced toxins such as DDT, PCB and flame retardants; heavy metals such as mercury, cadmium, iron and arsenic; and toxins produced by harmful algae such as domoic acid. She also analyzes the critter’s diet and studies population genetics. She is making a science of measuring environmental health and improvement by monitoring the sea’s inhabitants.
CICRU is a Santa Barbara-based 501(c)3 nonprofit and finds plenty to do here locally: responding to reported strandings, testing and investigation, educating both children and the community in general.
The organization’s website says, “Each year, on average, we find approximately 30 cetaceans stranded on local beaches.” In order of prevalence, these strandings include dolphins, porpoises, baleen whales, beaked whales, grey whales and sperm whales.
Studying stranded cetaceans yields information we really need. They live near to land and are exposed to runoff from human activities and industry, diseases from domestic animals and other pollutants. What we humans are exposed to, they are exposed to.
They have plenty of body fat to help keep them warm at sea. This fat holds onto toxins, and testing it shows a long history of an animal’s toxin exposure. They are high up the food chain and consume other critters that have consumed a wide range of plants and smaller critters.
They are indeed a sentinel species, something like the canaries in the coal mine, and bio-surveillance can help us better understand what we’re up against in our struggle to maintain our own health as well as serve as better stewards of the sea, land and sky.
— Capt. David Bacon operates WaveWalker Charters and is president of SOFTIN Inc., a nonprofit organization providing seafaring opportunities for those in need. Visit softininc.blogspot.com to learn more about the organization and how you can help. Click here to read previous columns. The opinions expressed are his own.
