The thriving of our communities and ecosystems in Hawai‘i is intricately linked to our connection to, knowledge of, and care for the natural world. The world-class research and innovation at the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology (SOEST) is intended to be informed by people and place, and accessible and beneficial to all. To honor those who reach beyond academia, we are highlighting members of SOEST who are committed to connecting and engaging with communities and students of all ages in Hawai‘i.

Throughout her academic career, Natalia Gauer Pasqualon has been driven by a passion for understanding the dynamics of volcanic systems and their implications for hazard assessment and mitigation. As a graduate student at the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology (SOEST), she studies volcanic deposits and active eruptions, and develops methodologies that improve prediction and response to volcanic hazards.

“Science exists to solve problems within society, so it is a priority for me that our community is aware of what’s happening at the university,” said Pasqualon, who is pursuing her doctoral degree in the SOEST Department of Earth Sciences. “Engaging with community members demystifies the research process and makes science accessible to everyone.”

Recently, Pasqualon was selected for the semester-long SOEST outreach and communications trainee program, through which she shared her knowledge, curiosity, and passion for volcanoes and Hawaiian geology with hundreds of students and community members. She was motivated to share volcano science and her research beyond the world of academia. During the traineeship, she offered workshops, hands-on activities, and presentations at O‘ahu elementary and high schools, and the Waikiki Aquarium’s Mauka to Makai community event. 

“Making science enjoyable and relatable helps break down barriers and encourages learning,” Pasqualon said. “This transparency builds trust and allows the community to see the real-world applications of our work. And, by offering interesting activities and engaging with kids we spark their curiosity and enthusiasm for science, inspiring the next generation.”  

Reciprocal learning

Pasqualon appreciates that learning and sharing goes two ways when interacting with students and community members.

“Building strong relationships with the community starts with these types of interactions,” she said. “Local knowledge and perspectives can provide valuable insights and incorporating community input into our research ensures that our work is relevant and beneficial to society.”

Connecting with a wide age range of students and adults has also offered Pasqualon, who is from Brazil, the opportunity to improve her communication skills. This was especially valuable as it prompted her to translate technical language into simpler terms and English is her second language. 

Another significant benefit, she said, is that she was invited to become more immersed in the local community. 

“While waiting for other students to arrive at Nanakuli High School, I had a wonderful cultural exchange with one student,” Pasqualon shared. “They were preparing an ʻahu ʻula, a feathered cape traditionally worn by aliʻi royals and high chiefs, to welcome a teacher returning after a period away. I was amazed to learn from this local student about the ʻahu ʻula and how they put it together. It was definitely a highlight of my trainee experience.”

Funding for the SOEST Outreach and Communications Trainee program was provided by the National Science Foundation (NSF/GEO #2304691) through a Catalyst Award for Science Advancement.

Read also on UH News.

Between 59 to 51 million years ago, Earth experienced dramatic warming–both periods of gradual warming stretching millions of years and sudden warming events known as hyperthermals. In a study published recently in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, University of Utah and Hawai‘i at Mānoa geoscientists revealed sea surface temperatures were closely linked with levels of atmospheric CO2 during this period. Further, the gradual warming was linked to CO2 from volcanic sources, whereas organic or methane-derived CO2 was linked to rapid warming. 

“Volcanic sources of CO2 are usually smaller and act over long time scales (millions of years), whereas methanogenic or organic sources can have higher rates of input and act over shorter time scales (decades to millennia),” said Richard Zeebe, study co-author and oceanography professor in the UH Mānoa School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology. “The higher rates are relevant to our future because human activities are releasing carbon at unprecedented rates compared to natural sources over the past 56 million years or more.”

Learning from the past

“The main reason we are interested in these global carbon release events is because they can provide analogs for future change,” said lead author Dustin Harper, a postdoctoral researcher  at the University of Utah. “We really don’t have a perfect analog event with the exact same background conditions and rate of carbon release.”

The study suggests emissions during two ancient hyperthermals are similar enough to today’s anthropogenic climate change to help scientists forecast its consequences. The findings further provide case studies to test carbon cycle feedback mechanisms and sensitivities critical for predicting anthropogenic climate change as humans continue pouring greenhouse gases into the atmosphere on an unprecedented scale in the planet’s history.

The research team analyzed microscopic foraminifera fossils—recovered in drilling cores taken from an undersea plateau in the Pacific—to characterize surface ocean chemistry at the time the shelled single-cell organisms were alive. Using a sophisticated statistical model, they reconstructed sea surface temperatures and atmospheric CO2 levels over a 6-million-year period that covered two hyperthermals, the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum, or PETM, 56 million years ago and Eocene Thermal Maximum 2, ETM-2, 54 million years ago.

“These events might represent a mid- to worst-case scenario kind of case study,” Harper said. “We can investigate them to answer what’s the environmental change that happens due to this carbon release?”

The findings indicate that as atmospheric levels of CO2 rose, so too did global temperatures. During the hyperthermals, no ice sheets covered the poles and ocean surface temperatures were in the mid-90s degrees Fahrenheit. 

Today, human activities associated with fossil fuels are releasing carbon 4 to 10 times more rapidly than occurred during these ancient hyperthermal events. However, the total amount of carbon released during the ancient events is similar to the range projected for human emissions, giving researchers a glimpse of what could be in store for us and future generations.

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Portions of this content are courtesy of the University of Utah.

Read also on UH News.

Sonia Rowley, an assistant researcher in the Department of Earth Sciences, was featured in an article on SHE Changes Climate. Excerpts of the profile article are below.

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An Expedition to Waikiki, Hawai’i

The exploration of our planet’s oceans often reveals extraordinary creatures that serve as key indicators of our climate’s health. Gorgonians—commonly known as “sea fans”—are not just fascinating for their size and structure but also for their critical role in marine ecosystems. With over 1,200 species documented, gorgonians are a vital part of coral reef systems, making up 64% of all corals on earth. These corals contribute significantly to the biodiversity and stability of underwater environments, many of which are increasingly threatened by climate change.

Gorgonians belong to the Octocorallia class, characterized by their unique eight-fold symmetry and the protein gorgonin, which gives them flexibility and resilience in their deep-sea habitats. These corals have adapted over millions of years to thrive at depths where sunlight barely penetrates, with 75% of them found at 50 meters (164 feet) or deeper. However, rising ocean temperatures and acidification—consequences of climate change—pose significant risks to these ancient marine organisms, among many other human-induced actions.

Our understanding of gorgonians and their ecological importance has been greatly expanded by experts such as Dr. Sonia J. Rowley, a professor at the University of Hawaiʻi. Dr. Rowley is one of the few researchers who have ventured to depths of 181 meters (600 feet) to study these corals firsthand. Her work provides invaluable insights into these deep-sea creatures and highlights the broader impacts of environmental changes on marine life, emphasizing the need for dedicated conservation efforts backed by science. And in this case, deep-sea science.

Sonia’s Beginnings

Hailing from a small fishing village in England, Sonia’s formative years unfolded on the deck of a boat, far removed from the conventional classroom setting. Despite the challenges of dyslexia that hindered her in her youth, she found solace and a sense of belonging in the ocean, learning to dive by the time she turned 11. This is where she discovered her true calling, allowing her to overcome her educational hurdles in pursuit of a career in biology.

However, her path into the world of marine biology and deep-sea exploration was far from easy, especially in a field historically run by men. At 28, after forging a path in commercial diving—a male-dominated sector—she made the bold decision to chase higher education, turning her past adversities into the fuel for her scientific journey. Sonia knew that to excel and carve out her place in this world, she would need to surpass many who had preceded her. She dedicated herself to becoming a highly trained, certified, and experienced diver, exploring depths that few others dared to venture. This rigorous commitment allowed her to gain insights into our oceans that most never will, positioning her as a true expert in her field.

While some might romanticize scientific life as one of constant exploration and adventure on the seas, Sonia was ready to share the reality involving extensive lab work, administrative tasks, grant applications, and the relentless quest for funding. Yet for Sonia, she’s established herself enough to still get out to sea to conduct her experiments, against all odds.

The Gorgonian Deep Diver

Diving with Sonia offered our expedition team a front-row seat to her deep-sea research on gorgonians. As we prepared to enter the 22°C (73°F) waters, Sonia briefed us on her plan: She was testing a new method for an upcoming Indo-Pacific expedition, using biodegradable dye on an invasive coral species to study their responses to underwater currents, especially at greater depths.

While Sonia was equipped with advanced diving gear designed for long-duration underwater research—called a closed-circuit rebreather (CCR)—our standard scuba gear limited our dive to just an hour at 30 meters. For Sonia, however, 30 meters is only a shallow dive—her true research lies in the Mesophotic coral reefs, also known as the “Twilight Zone,” which extend from 30 to 180 meters. This zone, where sunlight begins to fade, is where Sonia’s expertise shines. Her remarkable dive to 181 meters, a feat that involved nine hours underwater, was made possible by her use of her CCR.

The Gorgonian Lab

Following our intense diving, we transitioned from the unpredictable ocean to the stability of Sonia’s lab, a change of pace to more grounded scientific pursuits. Inside, we encountered an impressive collection of 8,000 gorgonian samples, each awaiting analysis by Sonia and her team. She shared her fascination with the many mysteries surrounding these specimens, particularly highlighting those from Wakatobi, Indonesia, collected from depths exceeding 140 meters. “There’s so much we don’t know about these gorgonians. They are here so that we can try to extract as much information as possible,” Sonia explained. “The deeper we go the less we know.”

Throughout her extensive dives and research in the Indo-Pacific, Sonia has observed a notable phenomenon: the diversity of gorgonian corals at shallower depths generally decreases when traveling eastward, yet remains constant at greater depths. This has sparked questions about coral distribution, their adaptation to changing environments, and potential evolutionary paths, especially in biodiversity hotspots like the Philippines and Indonesia. She distinguishes between corals found within specific depth ranges and those that thrive across various depths, highlighting the role of environmental variables such as light, temperature, dissolved oxygen, salinity, sedimentation, and geomorphology at depths beyond 140 meters.

Geomorphology, the study of the origin and evolution of earth’s surface features, emerges as a critical factor in Sonia’s research, influencing the findings and insights gained from each dive. Basically, she’s focused on the complex interplay between marine life and their habitats, paving the way for a deeper understanding of coral ecosystems and their resilience—especially amidst climate change. Because there’s so little science that’s been done surrounding deep-sea gorgonians, Sonia is on track to break more records, find more species and bring more of what sits so deep beneath the surface to light.

Read the full story on SHE Changes Climate.

After three and a half years exploring Jezero Crater’s floor and river delta, NASA’s Perseverance rover will ascend to an area where it will search for more discoveries that could rewrite Mars’ history. As members of the Mastcam-Z camera team for the rover, Earth and Planetary Sciences graduate student Eleni Ravanis and her advisor Sarah Fagents, researcher in the Hawai‘i Institute of Geophysics and Planetology, will be looking for rocks on the crater rim that might provide detailed insights into the earliest period of the planet’s history.

“Our samples are already an incredibly scientifically compelling collection, but the crater rim promises to provide even more samples that will have significant implications for our understanding of Martian geologic history,” said Ravanis. “This is because we expect to investigate rocks from the most ancient crust of Mars. These rocks formed from a wealth of different processes, and some represent potentially habitable ancient environments that have never been examined up close before.”

Since February 2021, the rover has been exploring the floor of the 45 km-diameter Jezero Crater, where an ancient delta provides a window into the fluvial history of the area. During that phase of the mission, the rover collected the first sedimentary rocks ever sampled from a planet other than Earth. These sedimentary rocks in particular are important because they formed when particles of various sizes were transported by water and then deposited into a standing body of water; on Earth, liquid water is one of the most critical requirements for life as we know it.

Perseverance recently began the months-long ascent up the western rim of Jezero Crater that is likely to include some of the steepest and most challenging terrain the rover has encountered to date. The rover operators at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory say that the rover may have to climb slopes of as much as 23 degrees, and eventually the rover may have gained more than 300 meters in elevation from its original landing site.  

On the Crater Rim Campaign, Ravanis is one of the science leads meaning she will provide input into where the rover drives and what rocks should be investigated along the way. These promise to be exciting times, as the rover should see very ancient rocks, perhaps more than four billion years old, that were excavated by the formation of Jezero crater.

“I am very excited for the rover to investigate rocks in and on the crater rim thought to be a part of geological units that are very widespread on Mars,” said Ravanis. “These likely include the very ancient crust, the products of ancient volcanic eruptions, and rocks altered by water that date from a time when Mars had a very different climate to today. Examining these rocks up close and sampling them for later return to Earth will inform our understanding of not just Jezero Crater, but the planet Mars as a whole and through time.”

Read more on NASA JPL News.

It is estimated that scientists have discovered only one percent of the yeast species thought to exist on Earth. With a four-year, $1 million project, funded by the National Science Foundation, Anthony Amend, professor in the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology (SOEST), hopes to change this—by shedding light on what is known as a ‘dark area’ of the fungal tree of life.

Yeasts impact human health and food safety, play critical roles in ecosystems. Some of these produce high-value oils and pigments which are a key element in certain pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, and food additives.

Amend along with a team of researchers and graduate students will partner with Hi‘ipaka LLC at the Waimea Botanical Garden, O‘ahu Army Natural Resource Program, and Honolulu Zoo to collect yeasts from plants, soils, streams, and animals on O‘ahu. They will systematically isolate and describe yeasts present in these environments using a combination of genome sequencing, and new technology to get these cultures to grow under laboratory conditions. 

“Because we know so little about yeast diversity and their distributions, it’s difficult to understand the evolutionary history of the larger fungal tree of life, including mushrooms, medicines, and plant symbionts upon which human livelihoods rely,” said Amend. “This project will make it so much easier to identify pathogens, and will help us to understand the cryptic biological diversity comprising microbiomes that reside inside plants and animals.”

UH advancing frontiers of microbiome research

This project stems directly from Amend and other UH researchers’ previous work sampling the Waimea watershed to understand how microbiomes are connected by foodwebs at large scales. Preliminary analysis from the Waimea samples showed that Hawai‘i, remarkably, contains yeast diversity equal to about half of all yeast species described worldwide.  

“Had it not been for the sustained collaborations of botanists, stream ecologists, marine biologists, and soil scientists working together to understand microbiomes, we’d never have this type of holistic picture of Hawaiian diversity,” shared Amend. “This is also a testament to our culture in Hawai’i and at UH Mānoa of sharing data and working towards a common purpose.  This contributes to the growing reputation of UH Mānoa as a leader in environmental microbiome research.”

Amend anticipates identifying potentially hundreds of novel yeast species. These new insights into yeast diversity will be used to predict global species diversity, host and habitat specificity, and diversity hotspots. They plan to work with Hawaiian cultural practitioner Sam Gon to give every new species an ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi-Latin name.  

“Lots of studies suggest that Hawaiian biodiversity is uniquely endemic,” said Amend. “I’m excited to see whether that extends to Hawaiian microbes like fungi. Additionally, we’ve already shown that these yeasts are important for Hawaiian conservation and even plastic degradation, so this biodiversity discovery work might be the first step in breakthrough technology.”

Read also on UH News and Maui Now.

A team from the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa is tackling an important cause of human-made climate change—common refrigerants used for everything from cooling homes and businesses to freezing and preserving food and medicine. The National Science Foundation (NSF) announced on August 21 that UH and five other universities have been awarded $26 million to establish a fourth generation (Gen-4) NSF Engineering Research Center (ERC) to create sustainable refrigerant technology.

The majority of refrigerants, called hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), are used in heating, ventilation, air conditioning and refrigeration (HVACR) systems. HVACR systems account for almost 10% of global greenhouse-gas emissions because of leaks that release HFCs into the atmosphere and the significant amount of energy it takes to operate them.

The new NSF Gen-4 ERC Environmentally Applied Refrigerant Technology Hub (EARTH) aims to create a transformative “sustainable refrigerant lifecycle” by lowering HFC emissions; creating safe, property-balanced replacement refrigerants; and increasing the energy efficiency of HVACR systems.

“Understanding the underlying chemistry of new refrigerants in the atmosphere is central to defining the impact onto our climate and ultimately the rise of sea levels,” said UH Mānoa Professor Ralf I. Kaiser (Department of Chemistry, College of Natural Sciences), the UH project lead. “We will be developing a tightly integrated collaborative network to predict for the first time the atmospheric impact of potential new refrigerants before they are incorporated into HVACR systems. This is just one aspect of UHʻs role in this important project.”

Gen-4 NSF Engineering Research Center

Along with UH, ERC EARTH includes teams from University of Notre Dame, Lehigh University, University of South Dakota, University of Maryland and project lead University of Kansas. The group was selected from among hundreds of other proposed centers following a highly competitive two-year review process. NSF currently supports just 15 ERCs in advanced manufacturing, energy and environment, health and infrastructure.

“For UH to be part of a team selected for a NSF Engineering Research Center just speaks volumes to the quality of our researchers and personnel,” said UH Mānoa Provost Michael Bruno. “I cannot overstate its significance, and this groundbreaking project positions UH at the forefront of climate change mitigation while addressing a critical challenge to Hawaiʻi and the world.”

NSF Director Sethuraman Panchanathan said ERCs ask big questions in order to catalyze solutions with far reaching impacts.

“NSF Engineering Research Centers are powerhouses of discovery and innovation, bringing America’s great engineering minds to bear on our toughest challenges,” said Panchanathan. “By collaborating with industry and training the workforce of the future, ERCs create an innovation ecosystem that can accelerate engineering innovations, producing tremendous economic and societal benefits for the nation.”

UHʻs many project responsibilities

The UH Mānoa team includes Professors Kaiser, Rui Sun (Department of Chemistry, College of Natural Sciences), Christina Karamperidou (Department of Atmospheric Sciences, School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology), Kieko Matteson (Department of History, College of Arts, Languages & Letters) and Jennifer Pagala Barnett (Division Of Student Success Student, Diversity and Inclusion). Kaiser says it is fitting that UH is playing such an important role in the project.

“Hawaiʻi is increasingly vulnerable to global warming and its impacts, including more frequent and severe weather extremes and sea level rise,” Kaiser said. “Sea level rise, which exacerbates flooding, coastal inundation and erosion, poses a serious threat not only to Hawaiʻi, but also to major population centers along the Pacific Rim, such as Japan and Australia.”

Kaiser and Sun’s groups will study the atmospheric chemistry of gas phase refrigerants and their interaction with atmospheric ice particles. Kaiser’s group will employ crossed molecular beams and acoustic levitators to study the fate of refrigerants in the atmosphere. The efforts are complimented by Sun’s computer simulations with artificial intelligence to understand the reaction at the atomistic detail.

“By following this approach, we will avoid the mistakes done in the 1970s, when chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), an otherwise excellent refrigerant, resulted in catastrophic ozone depletion,” Sun said.

Karamperidou, a co-leader of the ERC’s research thrust on novel and safe refrigerants, will integrate the experimental and computational data into climate models to study the impacts of HFCs, their replacement compounds, and novel cooling technologies and practices on climate and atmospheric circulation.

“As temperatures continue to rise and with them the frequency and intensity of heat waves, so does the need for refrigeration and air conditioning,” said Karamperidou. “This leads to increased refrigerant use and related greenhouse gas emissions, and a vicious cycle between HVACR and global warming that needs to be better understood and ultimately broken.”

Matteson will place the modern demand for cooling and its social, environmental, and economic impacts into historical context. She notes that air conditioning technology was first developed in the early twentieth century and didn’t become widespread in U.S. homes until the 1970s.

“Now, extreme heat is affecting our health, learning and productivity, and exacerbating disparities between the haves and have-nots,” said Matteson. “Mitigating HFCs’ harmful effects while ensuring that everyone can function at a livable temperature is a vital social justice issue that needs to be driven by historical understanding as much as science.”

As part of the center, UH Mānoa will also establish a new interdisciplinary graduate program in atmospheric chemistry (College of Natural Sciences and SOEST) to train future leaders in chemistry, atmospheric science and environmental science.

Diversity and Culture of Inclusion

Barnett will manage the Diversity and Culture of Inclusion (DCI) for the ERC, spearheading initiatives to support and advance EARTH’s diversity goals for students, faculty and staff. A major focus is to recruit and increase participation of Indigenous and tribal communities.

“I am looking forward to this opportunity to bring our commitment to diversity to our partner universities and to this important effort,” said Barnett. “This is a global issue that we are trying to address and one of the keys to success is to ensure that all voices are being considered and heard and offered an equitable opportunity to affect change.”

“For our team to be leading the DCI initiatives for the entire ERC shows how UH, and Hawaiʻi in general, lead the nation in these types of efforts,” said Bruno. “We are committed to being a Native Hawaiian Place of Learning and fully embracing our multicultural and multi-ethnic communities. This is an opportunity to extend that forward thinking to the continent.”

Allen Vincent, a 4th year Chemistry PhD student in Sun’s lab, is the President of the Student Leadership Council (SLC) for ERC EARTH. He leads an active council of 26 students from the partner institutions who are all involved in research and academic activities for the ERC. The SLC will work closely with DCI efforts to address the ERC culture, diversity and recruitment of students.

Workforce training

ERC EARTH will work with industry to develop workforce goals that will involve community colleges to address workforce gaps. The UH team will work with the UH community colleges through coordinated outreach and training to prepare the next generation of HVACR workers.

“This project demonstrates the amazing synergies we can achieve when our campuses work together,” said UH President David Lassner. “Our world-class researchers will be developing solutions to a major challenge facing the planet with the commitment to train not just the next generation of researchers but also helping our community colleges train local residents for the high-quality jobs that will need to be filled to install and maintain newer systems that are more climate-friendly to our planet.”

More about ERC EARTH

The initial $26-million award is eligible for renewal for five additional years until 2034. NSF’s ERC program brings technology-based industry and universities together to strengthen the competitive position of American industry in the global marketplace. This ERC has interacting foundational components that go beyond the research project, including engineering workforce development and value creation within an innovation ecosystem that will outlast the lifetime of the ERC.

Read also on UH News and Kaua’i News.

In a study published today in Royal Society Open Science, researchers at the Marine Mammal Research Program (MMRP) at UH Hawaiʻi Institute of Marine Biology (HIMB) and Alaska Whale Foundation (AWF) consider a new designation of the humpback whales they study: tool wielders. Researchers have known that humpback whales create “bubble nets” to hunt, but they have learned that the animals don’t just create the bubble nets; they manipulate this unique tool in a variety of ways to maximize their food intake in Alaskan feeding grounds. This novel research demystifies a behavior key to the whales’ survival and offers a compelling case for including humpbacks among the rare animals that manufacture and wield their own tools.

“Many animals use tools to help them find food,” explains Professor Lars Bejder, co-lead author of the study and Director of MMRP, “but very few actually create or modify these tools themselves. We discovered that solitary humpback whales in southeast (SE) Alaska craft complex bubble nets to catch krill, which are tiny shrimp-like creatures. These whales skillfully blow bubbles in patterns that form nets with internal rings, actively controlling details like the number of rings, the size and depth of the net, and the spacing between bubbles. This method lets them capture up to seven times more prey in a single feeding dive without using extra energy. This impressive behavior places humpback whales among the rare group of animals that both make and use their own tools for hunting.”

Success in hunting is key for the whalesʻ survival. The population of humpback whales in SE Alaska overwinters in Hawaiʻi, and their energy budget for the entire year depends on their ability to capture enough food during summer and fall in SE Alaska. Unraveling the nuances of their carefully honed hunting technique sheds light on how migratory humpback whales consume enough calories to traverse the Pacific Ocean.

Advanced tools & partnerships are key to demystifying whale behavior

Marine mammals known as cetaceans include whales, dolphins, and porpoises, and they are notoriously difficult to study. Advances in research tools are making it easier to track and understand their behavior, and in this instance, researchers employed specialty tags and drones to study the whalesʻ movements from above and below the water. 

“We deployed non-invasive suction-cup tags on whales and flew drones over solitary bubble-netting humpback whales in SE Alaska, collecting data on their underwater movements,” shares co-author and MMRP researcher William Gough. The tools have incredible capability, but honing them takes practice. Gough reflects, “Whales are a difficult group to study, requiring skill and precision to successfully tag and/or drone them.” 

The logistics of working in a remote location in SE Alaska brought its own challenges to the research. “We are so grateful to our research partners at the Alaska Whale Foundation (AWF) for their immense knowledge of the local area and the whales in that part of the world,” emphasizes Bejder. “This research would not have been possible without the strong collaborative effort with AWF.”  

More insights and improved management to come

Cetaceans throughout the globe face a slough of threats that range from habitat degradation, climate change, fisheries, to chemical and noise pollution. One quarter of the 92 known cetacean species are at risk of extinction, and there is a clear and urgent need to implement effective conservation strategies on their behalf. How the animals hunt is key to their survival, and understanding this essential behavior makes resource managers better poised to adeptly monitor and conserve the feeding grounds that are critical to their survival. 

“This little-studied foraging behavior is wholly unique to humpback whales,” notes Gough. “It’s so incredible to see these animals in their natural habitat, performing behaviors that only a few people ever get to see. And it’s rewarding to be able to come back to the lab, dive into the data, and learn about what they’re doing underwater once they disappear from view.” 

With powerful new tools in researchersʻ hands, many more exciting cetacean behavioral discoveries lie on the horizon. “This is a rich dataset that will allow us to learn even more about the physics and energetics of solitary bubble-netting,” shares Bejder. “There is also data coming in from humpback whales performing other feeding behaviors, such as cooperative bubble-netting, surface feeding, and deep lunge feeding, allowing for further exploration of this population’s energetic landscape and fitness.”

“What I find exciting is that humpbacks have come up with complex tools allowing them to exploit prey aggregations that otherwise would be unavailable to them,” says Dr. Andy Szabo, AWF Executive Director and study co-lead. “It is this behavioral flexibility and ingenuity that I hope will serve these whales well as our oceans continue to change.” 

This groundbreaking work was made possible with support from Lindblad Expeditions – National Geographic Fund, the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, and a Department of Defense (DOD) Defense University Research Instrumentation Program (DURIP) grant. 

This study was conducted under a NOAA permit issued to Alaska Whale Foundation (no. 19703). All research was conducted under institution IACUC approvals.

Read also on UH News, HIMB News, and Eurekalert.