[{"command":"openDialog","selector":"#drupal-modal","settings":null,"data":"\u003Cdiv id=\u0022republish_modal_form\u0022\u003E\u003Cform class=\u0022modal-form-example-modal-form ecl-form\u0022 data-drupal-selector=\u0022modal-form-example-modal-form\u0022 action=\u0022\/en\/article\/modal\/9907\u0022 method=\u0022post\u0022 id=\u0022modal-form-example-modal-form\u0022 accept-charset=\u0022UTF-8\u0022\u003E\u003Cp\u003EHorizon articles can be republished for free under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) licence.\u003C\/p\u003E\n \u003Cp\u003EYou must give appropriate credit. We ask you to do this by:\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n 1) Using the original journalist\u0027s byline\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n 2) Linking back to our original story\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n 3) Using the following text in the footer: This article was originally published in \u003Ca href=\u0027#\u0027\u003EHorizon, the EU Research and Innovation magazine\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\n \u003Cp\u003ESee our full republication guidelines \u003Ca href=\u0027\/horizon-magazine\/republish-our-stories\u0027\u003Ehere\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\n \u003Cp\u003EHTML for this article, including the attribution and page view counter, is below:\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cdiv class=\u0022js-form-item form-item js-form-type-textarea form-item-body-content js-form-item-body-content ecl-form-group ecl-form-group--text-area form-no-label ecl-u-mv-m\u0022\u003E\n \n\u003Cdiv\u003E\n \u003Ctextarea data-drupal-selector=\u0022edit-body-content\u0022 aria-describedby=\u0022edit-body-content--description\u0022 id=\u0022edit-body-content\u0022 name=\u0022body_content\u0022 rows=\u00225\u0022 cols=\u002260\u0022 class=\u0022form-textarea ecl-text-area\u0022\u003E\u003Ch2\u003E Grey whale\u2019s disappearance from Atlantic Ocean holds clues to possible return \u003C\/h2\u003E\u003Cp\u003EYouri van den Hurk is preparing for a possible big welcome-home event - the return of the grey whale to European waters after an absence of about 500 years.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EThe grey whale disappeared from the eastern Atlantic in the 15th century and from the western Atlantic around the 17th to 18th century, according to van den Hurk.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EA research fellow at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), van den Hurk is part of a project inspired in part by several sightings in the Atlantic Ocean over the past decade of individual grey whales from the North Pacific population.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003E\u2018The grey whale is the only whale species that has completely disappeared from an entire ocean,\u2019 he said. Van den Hurk is part of the \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/cordis.europa.eu\/project\/id\/101025598\u0022\u003EHorizon-funded Demise of the Atlantic Grey whale project (DAG)\u003C\/a\u003E, which is looking into whether the species might eventually return to European waters.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EA better view of the future, of course, requires a clearer understanding of the past. That\u2019s why DAG is also assessing the causes of the grey whale\u2019s eradication in the eastern Atlantic five centuries ago, seeking information on factors that might lead to a return of the coastal cetaceans.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EGrey whales can grow to as many as 15 metres long and weigh up to 40 tonnes \u2013 equal to the combined weight of about 20 cars. Their lifespan is generally 50 to 70 years.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EBaleen whales\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EThey are part of a class of whales whose mouths feature comblike plates of bone known as baleen rather than teeth. All baleen whales eat by filtering plankton, krill and small fish out of the seawater. \u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EGrey whales suck food from the sea floor while swimming and rolling on their sides, a practice known as bottom-feeding uncommon for other baleen whales. The resulting \u201cmud plumes\u201d are important to the ecosystem because they churn up nutrients and crustaceans that enrich other sea life.\u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cblockquote class=\u0022tw-text-center tw-text-blue tw-font-bold tw-text-2xl lg:tw-w-1\/2 tw-border-2 tw-border-blue tw-p-12 tw-my-8 lg:tw-m-12 lg:tw--ml-16 tw-float-left\u0022\u003E\n \u003Cspan class=\u0022tw-text-5xl tw-rotate-180\u0022\u003E\u201c\u003C\/span\u003E\n \u003Cp class=\u0022tw-font-serif tw-italic\u0022\u003EThe grey whale is the only whale species that has completely disappeared from an entire ocean.\r\n\u003C\/p\u003E\n \u003Cfooter\u003E\n \u003Ccite class=\u0022tw-not-italic tw-font-normal tw-text-sm tw-text-black\u0022\u003EYouri van den Hurk, DAG\u003C\/cite\u003E\n \u003C\/footer\u003E\n\u003C\/blockquote\u003E\n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003ELocated in the North Pacific, the population of grey whales totalled around 27 000 in 2016, according to the U.S. National Marine Fisheries Service.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EGrey whales have one of the longest known migrations of any mammal, leaving their Arctic feeding grounds in September-October and swimming south as much as around 10 000 kilometres along the coastline to breed in the warm waters off Mexico.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003E\u2018It\u2019s unclear what triggered their disappearance from the Atlantic - whether it\u2019s an environmental factor, a human factor or a combination of both,\u2019 van den Hurk said.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EResearchers do know that the population of Atlantic grey whales began to decline gradually approximately 50 000 years ago \u2013 a process that the experts suspect was driven by environmental factors. By the 16th century, various whaling cultures were active across Europe, leading van den Hurk to suspect they contributed to the whales\u2019 extinction.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EStill, determining the exact factors that caused this eradication remains the basic challenge.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EAnswering this question will be crucial to conservation efforts in Europe should the species return, according to van den Hurk.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EUnder the supervision of Dr. James Barrett, a historical and environmental researcher at NTNU, van den Hurk analysed the collagen preserved in the whale bones found at sites that various tribes across Europe, including Spain, south-western France, Normandy and Scandinavia used to inhabit. His total sample amounted to 717 bone fragments, including 109 from grey whales.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003E\u2018Where people lived they often took bone remains of the species that they caught or it could also be that the whales stranded at the shore and that the locals took their bones with them to their settlements,\u2019 van den Hurk explained.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EThe samples were taken to a laboratory at the University of Cambridge in England where researchers performed mass spectrometry, an analytical technique used to measure the mass-to-charge ratio of ions. A bone protein known as collagen plays a central role in the analysis.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cblockquote class=\u0022tw-text-center tw-text-blue tw-font-bold tw-text-2xl lg:tw-w-1\/2 tw-border-2 tw-border-blue tw-p-12 tw-my-8 lg:tw-m-12 lg:tw--ml-16 tw-float-left\u0022\u003E\n \u003Cspan class=\u0022tw-text-5xl tw-rotate-180\u0022\u003E\u201c\u003C\/span\u003E\n \u003Cp class=\u0022tw-font-serif tw-italic\u0022\u003ELots of noise, most of the time, that\u2019s a problem.\r\n\u003C\/p\u003E\n \u003Cfooter\u003E\n \u003Ccite class=\u0022tw-not-italic tw-font-normal tw-text-sm tw-text-black\u0022\u003EJakob Tougaard, SATURN\u003C\/cite\u003E\n \u003C\/footer\u003E\n\u003C\/blockquote\u003E\n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003E\u2018We look at the collagen that is preserved in the bone,\u2019 van den Hurk said. Subtle differences make it possible to tie the collagen to a specific whale species.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EFurthermore, the stable isotopes preserved in bones sheds light on the migration routes of the grey whales.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EMalign influences\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EOnce the results have been compiled, the next step will be to model the whales\u2019 migration routes to provide information on malign influences such as plastics pollution or ship noise, which are likely to affect any repopulation of the eastern Atlantic. \u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003ENoise from vessels is the research focus of Jakob Tougaard, a professor at the Department of Marine Ecology at Aarhus University in Denmark. As part of another \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/cordis.europa.eu\/project\/id\/101006443\u0022\u003EHorizon-funded research project called SATURN\u003C\/a\u003E, he has been examining the responses of marine mammals to underwater noise from whale-watch boats.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003E\u2018Lots of noise, most of the time, that\u2019s a problem,\u2019 said Tougaard. \u2018In open waters, the main source is commercial shipping and closer to shore it\u2019s small, private boats.\u2019\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003ESuch disturbances reduce the time whales spend hunting for food or feeding offspring, threatening their survival, he said.\u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EThe SATURN project advises regulators and stakeholders on acceptable limits of vessel noise and best approaches to reduction of underwater radiated noise.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EUnderwater noise\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EWhile enacting new shipping regulations can generally be \u2018a painfully slow process,\u2019 he anticipates the implementation of tougher European rules to limit underwater noise.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003E\u2018I\u2019m optimistic - there are many people who are screaming for action now,\u2019 Tougaard said. In the coming years, he expects to see agreements within the EU setting new limits on ship noise.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EBack in Norway meanwhile, as van den Hurk of NTNU contemplates the possible return of the grey whale to European waters, he thinks climate change may increase the chances.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EAs a result of rising temperatures, the Northwest Passage \u2013 the sea route between the Atlantic and Pacific via the Arctic - has been open for longer. This has prompted at least four whales to take a wrong turn in North Alaska, leading them into the Atlantic rather than back into the northern Pacific, according to van den Hurk.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EIn the summer of 2021, a grey whale ended up off the coast of Morocco and was spotted close to France and Italy as well.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EHopeful message\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EIt could take decades for grey whales to reclaim their habitat in the eastern Atlantic, according to van den Hurk. In any case, the mere prospect of their return sends a \u2018hopeful message,\u2019 he said.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003E\u2018It shows that the impact we have on our surroundings can potentially still be reversed,\u2019 van den Hurk said.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cem\u003EResearch in this article was funded via the EU\u0027s Marie Sk\u0142odowska-Curie Actions (MSCA). 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