BBC SCIENCE : BEAKED WHALE IS DIVE CHAMP by Jonathan Amos
EXCERPT:
"Satellite tags attached to these animals, swimming off the coast of
California, recorded a dive to nearly 3km below the ocean surface, and one that
lasted 137 minutes.
This performance exceeds that for any southern elephant seal, which is also
known to be an extreme breath-holder.
The Cuvier's record-breaking dives are reported in the journal
Plos One.
Erin Falcone is a research biologist with the Cascadia Research Collective in
Washington State, US, which led the research project.
She told BBC News that beaked whales had very high levels of the myoglobin
protein in their muscles, to the point where the tissues appeared almost black.
This functions like haemoglobin in the blood, allowing the whales to store
much higher levels of oxygen, and thus breathe less frequently while remaining
active."
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