The researchers, who describe their findings in the scientific journal BMC Veterinary Research, used small drones that were hovered just above the whales. Samples of the exhaled air, which is clearly visible even from a distance and resembles a fountain, were taken using so-called Petri dishes, small glass dishes used in laboratories to grow microorganisms.
Deadly virus
The experiment was conducted off the coast of Northern Norway where groups of humpback whales, fin whales and sperm whales are present at different times of the year. Samples were also taken off northern Iceland and at Cape Verde further south in the Atlantic, where humpback whales can be seen during the spring and summer.
A number of skin samples were also taken from humpback whales and sperm whales off the Norwegian coast. In addition, samples were taken from the liver and kidneys of a pilot whale that died after it was first observed showing clear signs of illness.
The analyses caused some concern among the researchers. A morbillivirus, previously identified in dolphins, was detected in the exhaled air of two groups of humpback whales and a sperm whale, as well as in the kidney sample from the sick pilot whale.
Morbillivirus is closely associated with fatal outbreaks in various species of baleen whales and dolphins, as well as other toothed whales around the world. The virus damages the lungs and makes breathing difficult. It can also cause neurological damage and severely weaken the immune system. This is the first time it has been found in the northeast Atlantic.
Mass death
In several cases, morbillivirus has caused mass deaths. Large groups of dolphins or whales have stranded along the coasts of various regions and all attempts to save them have been fruitless.
Various herpes viruses were also found in the samples from the humpback whales. But fortunately, no traces of the extremely dangerous bird flu were detected.
Most of the whales in the study that carried the virus appeared completely healthy, which could mean they are not affected, or are affected only if they are starving or otherwise ill. But the example shows that it is important to monitor the presence of dangerous microorganisms in the oceans.
Facts: Whales
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Whales, dolphins and porpoises belong to the order Cetacea. Just over 90 species have been described, of which 16 are baleen whales and the rest are toothed whales.
Five species are classified as critically endangered on the international Red List: the Asian river dolphin from the Yangtze River in China, the California bottlenose dolphin from the Gulf of California in western Mexico, the Cameroon dolphin from the coastal waters of West Africa, the northern right whale from the east coast of North America, and the Rice's whale from the Gulf of Mexico.
