logo
UNB researchers help filmmakers get closeup view of endangered whales

UNB researchers help filmmakers get closeup view of endangered whales

CBC15-07-2025
Social Sharing
Two University of New Brunswick researchers are preparing for another cruise into the Gulf of St. Lawrence this week to study endangered North Atlantic right whales.
And the timing just happens to correspond with the release of an Apple TV+ documentary series featuring six of the world's most endangered animals.
Kim Davies, an associate professor in biological sciences, had a hand in the episode on right whales.
"This production we did last year was the largest one I've ever been involved with," Davies said.
The Wild Ones has episodes dedicated to Malayan tigers, Gobi bears, Javan rhinos, Caucasian leopards, western lowland gorillas, and North Atlantic right whales.
The series, from U.K.-based production company Offspring Films, was released on July 11.
Davies runs a research program on the right whales that inhabit New Brunswick waters in spring, summer and fall.
Currently, only about 350 North Atlantic right whales are left, with even fewer reproducing females, Davies said, and the population is well below the target for recovery.
Davies said the team goes out every year to do various research projects, and recently, started using new technology to tag the whales using drones.
The drones will fly over a whale and drop the tag, which will suction to the whale, she said. The tags have cameras on them, allowing for underwater footage.
The film crew of The Wild Ones attended last summer's cruise, filming from its own boat and then joining the researchers on Davies's boat during the tagging to capture the underwater perspective.
"Any underwater footage that you see from the perspective of the whale in the documentary will be our research program's contribution to the work," she said.
New docuseries episode assisted by N.B. right whale researchers
34 minutes ago
Duration 1:42
Researchers from the University of New Brunswick and Dalhousie University had a hand in a new Apple TV+ documentary series that delves into the world's most dangerous animals. The researchers helped filmmakers get a closeup look at the North Atlantic right whale.
UNB, Dalhousie University and Ocean Alliance researchers were in charge of putting the cameras on the whales for the underwater footage. Davies said the Canadian Whale Institute and Fisheries and Oceans Canada also played a role in the production.
Jillian Carter, a UNB graduate student, was on board last summer doing her own research on what right whales are eating.
"In order to protect the right whales, we need to know where they're going to be and where they usually are is linked to what they're eating in the summertime," Carter said.
She said right whales eat small marine crustaceans called copepods, which are smaller than a grain of rice.
While Carter wasn't directly involved with the tagging research or filmmaking, she said the experience itself was surreal.
"It has been a lifelong dream of mine to work on boats like this, and then to have an Apple TV+ film crew come aboard, it's kind of like, 'Wow. I can't believe this is real life.'"
Davies said the underwater footage was helpful for the TV crew, but it's also important to scientists to answer fundamental questions about how the whale behaves and uses its environment.
And she said researchers still have questions about how right whales become entangled in fishing gear underwater.
While they have yet to observe an underwater entanglement with a tagged whale, she said, if they keep tagging, they might eventually observe it and learn more about how entanglements happen.
Although Davies has worked with other film crews in the past on right whale documentaries, having an episode decided to the whale on a streaming service with the international reach of Apple TV+ will likely have a positive effect, she said.
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

More than 400 deaths linked to L.A. wildfires, researchers say
More than 400 deaths linked to L.A. wildfires, researchers say

CBC

timean hour ago

  • CBC

More than 400 deaths linked to L.A. wildfires, researchers say

The deadly wildfires that swept through Los Angeles this year likely contributed to hundreds more deaths, say researchers calling for better health tracking in the wake of natural disasters. As Canadian communities from B.C. to Newfoundland battle flames and drifting smoke, new research from JAMA medical journal published Wednesday draws attention to the long-term health effects associated with recent wildfires in L.A. and Maui, Hawai'i. A total of 30 people died directly from the L.A. wildfires, according to the study. Andrew Stokes of Boston University School of Public Health and Finnish researchers now estimate another 440 people died from health conditions related to the blaze. Stokes said these could be people with heart or lung conditions exacerbated by smoke. Mental health impacts and delays in care may have also contributed. In total, 6,371 deaths were observed compared with 5,931 expected from previous data, for a total of 440 "excess deaths." The researchers acknowledged the data was provisional and unmeasured factors could've played a role. WATCH | Harmful toxins can remain in structures that survive wildfires: Harmful toxins from wildfires linger in surviving homes 7 months ago "Each of these statistics is an underlying person with family that's now bereaved as a result," Stokes said. Getting a sense of the true burden of health impacts related to wildfires, including cancers among wildland firefighters that develop years later, may help prioritize disaster resources, he said. Need for proactive approach More than 100 people died directly from the Maui wildfire in August 2023, which also left one in five people tracked in the study with lung damage up to 14 months later. Dr. Sonia Angell, a professor in the epidemiology department at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, called for better tracking. "If we are lulled into the idea that the impact that climate has on health is really during the episodes then we're really getting behind the eight ball," Angell said."We're really missing out on opportunities to improve health and to prevent illness and death." Angell said most people see extreme weather events like wildfires, hurricanes or earthquakes as extreme shocks in the moment. But he health risks don't end there. "Our surveillance systems need to be improved to be able to really understand the impact of climate and health, so that our health departments and our governments can be more proactive rather than reactive," Angell said. Angell gave the example of compromised lung function after a wildfire that needs medical attention, but may never have been included in the formal counts. Dr. Courtney Howard, an emergency physician based in Yellowknife who treats patients harmed by wildfire smoke, said a new approach to showing the longer health impacts of wildfire from wildfires is important. "Too many Canadians have now had the experience of living within a smoky environment," Howard said from near Osoyoos, B.C. Smoke exposure can cause headache, runny nose, throat irritation and cough, she said. Provincial health officials say severe cough, shortness of breath, heart palpitations and wheezing are less common symptoms. "I don't want to scare people, but what is absolutely clear is that wildfire smoke is toxic," Howard said. "It's very bad for our lungs and we need to be decreasing our exposure as much as possible." Vulnerable at risk Health Canada estimated up to 240 annual deaths and $1.8 billion in healthcare costs are due to short-term health effects from wildfires. This week, health officials from B.C. to Newfoundland have warned vulnerable residents, such as those over age 65, pregnant, young children, people who have underlying medical conditions and those who physically exert themselves outside for work or sports, that they're considered at high risk of suffering health effects from smoke. Residents in smoky areas are advised to reduce their exposure: Keep windows and doors closed. Limit outdoor and strenuous activity. Turn off or use recirculation settings on HVAC systems to prevent smoke from entering. Use portable HEPA cleaners to filter air in one area of the home. Stay cool. Check in and care for those who are vulnerable. Howard said years of more intense wildfires in Canada reflect the impacts of climate change from fossil fuel combustion and other types of greenhouse gas emissions. "We still, I believe, have the ability to emergently decrease those greenhouse gas emissions and get ourselves onto a different track."

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store