Two whales create an amazing vortex in the ocean – DW – 01/11/2024

Lucky day for professional photographer and polar guide Piet van den Bemde. As his drone flew over the waters of Antarctica, he captured an unprecedented marine spectacle: a vortex of emerging bubbles that formed a Fibonacci spiral-like shape, a mathematical pattern often found in nature.

Although there was initially no explanation for this natural scene, it turned out that this formation was the work of humpback whales in the midst of hunting.

Refined technology

Bubble wrap is a humpback whale hunting technique known as bubble net feeding. The key to this technique is collaboration. Whales dive deep below the surface and direct their bubbles upward in a synchronized manner. Usually one of the whales is the one blowing the bubbles, while the others swim around the fish, leading them into the trap.

Once the prey is well collected, whales open their mouths wide and begin swallowing, usually by darting through the snail's eye.

This method of hunting humpback whales has been known to researchers for more than 30 years. However, due to the elusive nature of humpback whales, they are rarely captured on video. The material provides scientists with a closer perspective to further explore the lives of humpback whales.

This behavior appears to be culturally acquired, and although it was thought to be a practice exclusive to Northern Hemisphere populations, observations in the Southern Hemisphere have shown that humpback whales also feed with bubble nets. This discovery has prompted scientists to rethink what they know about the migratory and feeding behaviors of these majestic creatures.

Fibonacci in nature

The ability of humpback whales to create these spirals not only demonstrates their intelligence and ability to cooperate, but also reflects the existence of mathematical patterns in nature. The Fibonacci spiral, which appears in many life forms from plants to animals, is an example of how mathematics manifests itself in the natural world.

The Fibonacci spiral is a geometric pattern associated with the Fibonacci sequence, which is a series of numbers where each number is the sum of the previous two numbers. This sequence usually begins with the numbers 0 and 1, and continues indefinitely: 0, 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, and so on. The Fibonacci sequence was introduced to the Western world by Leonardo of Pisa, known as Fibonacci, in 1202, although it had previously been described in Indian mathematics.

It is found in nature, for example, in plants, in snail shells or in the formation of galaxies, which suggests that it may be an effective basic pattern for the growth and structure of various organisms.

ies (very interesting, science alert)