How whales engulf fish

A study of anchovies’ escape behavior from virtually approaching predators suggests that while anchovies’ threshold of responses is sufficient for sea lion-sized predators, it is not surpassed for approaching whales until the whale rapidly expands its jaws, allowing for simultaneous engulfment of as much as 60% of a school of anchovies; humpback whales use stealth to minimize escape responses of prey that have been evolving under pressure from single-prey-feeding predators for millions of years before lunge-feeding appeared as a strategy, according to the authors.

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Article #19-11099: “Predator-informed looming stimulus experiments reveal how large filter feeding whales capture highly maneuverable forage fish,” by D.E. Cade, N. Carey, P. Domenici, J. Potvin, and J.A. Goldbogen.

MEDIA CONTACT: D.E. Cade, Stanford University, Pacific Grove, CA; e-mail:

[email protected]