In the San Ignacio Lagoon in northwestern Mexico, a warm picture of whales living in harmony with humans is often staged here. As the last known breeding ground for gray whales in the world that has not been disturbed by human activities, the gray whales here Uncharacteristically, he especially likes to contact with human beings. For example, he proactively surfaced to be touched by others , and would not show any aggression at all. Many tourists come here especially, and they are even listed as World Heritage Sites by UNESCO.
However, it seems that big guys like whales seem to be more or less “fascinating close” to humans. Even killer whales known as killer whales, in fact, basically do not hurt people. Many people guess why whales do. Such an incredible move, especially the gray whales in Mexico, but when we look carefully at what is on these gray whales that surfaced, perhaps we can understand why they choose to be close to humans.
The terrifying creatures parasitic on the whales make the whales tortured
Barnacles are the main creatures that torment whales.
We know that barnacles may come more from food shows and food bloggers. Although barnacles look very ugly and densely packed to make people shudder, this large group of creatures is a delicious seafood and is called “from hell.” Delicious food” . People who have eaten barnacles will be full of praise for the tender taste. Many people feel that it is not like the taste of a shellfish. Indeed, barnacles are not a kind of shellfish, but a kind of limestone. The shell of the arthropod.
Barnacles belong to the phylum Arthropod, Crustacea, and Barnacles. This large family has more than 500 members. There are 110 species in our country alone. The biggest feature is not only delicious, but also likes to live in dense, and extremely strong. This is also the main reason for torturing whales, so how do barnacles attach to whales?
The life of a barnacle is divided into four stages: planktonic, nauplius, larvae and adult worms. After the adult worms, they have begun to secrete limestone hard shells. At that stage, they naturally have no ability to attach. What really settles on whales is the larvae stage. , The larval larvae will wander in the sea to find a suitable “residence”. Once it is suitable, the larval glands of the larval will secrete a strong glue, which will firmly fix the larval. Get up , and from then on, slices of barnacle adults will slowly appear on the whale’s body.
However, not all whales are parasitic barnacles. For example, killer whales are very smooth and clean. In fact, the glandular larvae of barnacles have high requirements for the flow rate of water, and killer whales, such as fast-swimming animals, do not provide glands. The chance for the larvae to attach, the second is that barnacles are filter-feeding arthropods, let alone eating at such a fast water speed, the “nets” are washed away.
Like a gray whale, it is a slow-swimming whale. Compared to the killer whale’s speed of 30 nautical miles per hour, the gray whale’s swimming speed is generally 3-4 nautical miles per hour, and in the fastest case, it will not exceed 8 nautical miles. There are also humpback whales with similar speeds, and their slow swimming speeds have become the main victims of barnacles.
@pythoncounhelping whales clean up barnacles♬ original sound – user99961825434
The whale tried everything to get rid of the barnacle
Barnacles like to bully the slow-swimming whales. Although the strong glue attached to the whale’s skin will not harm the whale, the large amount of parasites will make the whale itchy and unbearable. What makes whales even more unbearable is that these barnacles are specially found to be parasitic in some delicate and wrinkled places, such as the whale’s lips, nostrils, under the fins, around the eyelids, and even the reproductive organs. They died in 2013. A large number of barnacles parasitized around the genitals of a humpback whale. It is hard to imagine what a parasitized whale feels like.
In order to deal with these nasty barnacles, the whales have tried their best. Sometimes we find the whales constantly jumping or flapping their tails. Many people think that this is a signal to the whale companions around. In fact, this kind of shooting The action of hitting the water surface is the best way to impact the barnacle. As for the smaller whales, they will choose to rub the seabed in shallow water to remove the barnacle , but this action has a great risk of stranding, but in order to get rid of the barnacle, You can also take risks.
In the gray whales of Mexico, we can see that their mouths and bodies are covered with barnacles, as well as the white marks left on their skins after the barnacles fall. Like the gray whales, marine mammals with high IQ, probably Knowing that maybe only humans with flexible hands can help them deduct unbearable barnacles.
Someone may ask, don’t whales have animal companions specifically to help them eliminate barnacles? Rhinoceros and rhino birds help them remove parasites from skin folds. There are also fish in the sea that remove parasites from other fish, such as doctor fish, but whales do not have animals specifically for them. Whales are emerging. Some seagulls did fly up in the future, but not to remove the barnacles, but to take the opportunity to peck a piece of flesh to eat . Hard and meatless things like barnacles are almost inedible.
Perhaps gray whales and other whales have many purposes for getting close to humans, but the barnacles on them are indeed a reason. However, there are many other animals plagued by barnacles in the ocean. Turtles are one of the victims , and they are covered in many cases. The barnacles make people get goose bumps, but these terrifying parasites can slowly torture sea turtles to death.
Of course, the friends on the beach are more familiar with barnacles. The rocks, ship bottoms, and buildings in the sea are ideal parasites for barnacles. Cleaning these barnacles can also cause human headaches.