Latest news with #JudithBrown
Metro
07-08-2025
- Science
- Metro
The heartbreaking and worrying reason blue whales are going silent
To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video The ocean is going silent. Blue whales, the gentle leviathans that swim in all but one of the world's oceans, are the singers of the underwater world. Their groans, whistles and clicks are famously so soothing that they count as white noise, and they may even have a pho-ne-tic alphabet. These haunting melodies aren't just for fun – these giants do so to socialise, get around and differentiate friend from foe. But researchers have revealed that blue whales are singing less and less as they're simply too hungry to do so. Scientists have used underwater hydrophones – an aquatic version of microphones – to monitor and record their vocalisations off the coast of Monterey Bay, California. The Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute found that the beats are singing 40% less than they once did six years ago. Over this period, the temperatures in the ocean have been cranked up by major heat waves, causing toxic algae to bloom that kill krill and anchovies. Both are the main diet of blue whales, the study said. John Ryan, a biological oceanographer at the institute, told the National Geographic: 'When you really break it down, it's like trying to sing while you're starving. 'They were spending all their time just trying to find food.' Humpback whales have a more diverse diet of krill, plankton and schooling fish, so their song frequency didn't change amid the heatwave. Over the six-year study, a pool of warm water officially dubbed 'the blob' drifted into the Bering Sea and Gulf of Alaska. The blob warmed the ocean by 2.5°C, far more than El Niño, a natural climate pattern linked to warmer conditions in the Pacific Ocean, could. The 2,000-mile-wide blob caused a record-breaking outbreak of toxic algae so severe that it shut down crab fisheries, starved seabirds and killed plankton. As krill vanished from the seas, the blue whales scattered and had to spend all their energy searching for food rather than singing. The scientist said this suggests the mammals not only ate less but also mated less, given they vocalise low-frequency D calls when they do. The researchers said that the blue whales' acoustics are a warning for what's to come as climate change cranks the planet's thermostat up. Sea surface temperatures broke records last year, with a quarter of the oceans experiencing once-rare marine heat waves. These warmer oceans cause rising sea levels, bleaching coral reefs and more intense hurricanes. Sea basins absorb 90% of the excess heat trapped in the atmosphere from greenhouse gases, which are emitted by burning fossil fuels. More Trending Dr Judith Brown, projects director at Blue Marine Foundation, which supports governments to protect marine areas, described whale song as a 'truly eerily beautiful sound'. 'We know that 90% of global fish stocks are overfished – a harsh reality that threatens marine ecosystems,' she told Metro. 'Blue whales rely on krill to survive, and fishing krill, a species from the bottom of the food chain, occurs annually around Antarctica. This year, more than 620,000 tonnes of krill were taken in just a few months. 'High fishing pressure likely results in limited krill availability for whales. So it's no surprise that whales struggling to find sufficient food may no longer 'sing'.' Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@ For more stories like this, check our news page. MORE: Tarantulas with giant penises discovered and we're scared stiff MORE: Millionaire trophy hunter gored to death by 1.3 tonne bull on African safari MORE: Danish zoo asks owners to donate unwanted animals to feed to predators
Yahoo
01-08-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
'Women over 70 still need to attend breast screening'
A 71-year-old woman who was diagnosed with breast cancer said had she left her screening any later her "story would've been very different". A mammogram discovered Judith Brown from Backwell, near Bristol, had a tumour in April 2024. She had not been screened for "some years" due to routine checks stopping at 70. Ms Brown said staff at Southmead Hospital told her to "spread the word" to women over 70 that they are still able to request a screening. She said: "My message is don't wait. Ask. Just because you can't feel something and you haven't had a mammogram or a test for any other cancer. Please, please go and ask." Ms Brown had a lumpectomy, surgery that removes the tumour and surrounding tissue, she said: "The care and attention that I had has been phenomenal, Southmead are just amazing." She also encourages others to take advantage of help that is on offer. "There's so much support out there, I had the benefit of Macmillan counselling," she told BBC Radio Bristol: "Thankfully I am fully fit again." More news stories for Bristol Watch the latest Points West Listen to the latest news for Bristol Breast cancer is the most common form of cancer in the UK. Nearly 57,000 people diagnosed with it every year, most are women, however about 390 of these cases are in men. One in seven women in the UK develop breast cancer during their lifetime and it is most common in women over the age of 50. Phoebe McCulloh, a clinical nurse specialist in breast screening at Southmead Hospital, told BBC Radio Bristol: "It's not just about finding lumps. You want to look out for any changes to the skin. "That could be brushes, that could be an orange peel-like texture to the skin, very tiny dimples. It could be the skin sort of puckering or pulling in." "It could also be any changes to the nipple or areola and that could look like nipple inversion, fluid from the nipple or redness." As part of the "Wake Up Call" live broadcast series on BBC Radio Bristol's Breakfast Show presenter, Joe Sims, has been hearing from people who have had breast cancer in the hope it will encourage listeners to get checked for serious health conditions. Follow BBC Bristol on Facebook, X and Instagram. Send your story ideas to us on email or via WhatsApp on 0800 313 4630. More on this story Breast screening trial hopes to find cancers earlier Breast cancer survivor becomes face of new campaign
BBC News
01-08-2025
- Health
- BBC News
Breast cancer warning to women over 70 amid calls for more screening
A 71-year-old woman who was diagnosed with breast cancer said had she left her screening any later her "story would've been very different". A mammogram discovered Judith Brown from Backwell, near Bristol, had a tumour in April 2024. She had not been screened for "some years" due to routine checks stopping at 70. Ms Brown said staff at Southmead Hospital told her to "spread the word" to women over 70 that they are still able to request a screening. She said: "My message is don't wait. Ask. Just because you can't feel something and you haven't had a mammogram or a test for any other cancer. Please, please go and ask." Ms Brown had a lumpectomy, surgery that removes the tumour and surrounding tissue, she said: "The care and attention that I had has been phenomenal, Southmead are just amazing."She also encourages others to take advantage of help that is on offer. "There's so much support out there, I had the benefit of Macmillan counselling," she told BBC Radio Bristol: "Thankfully I am fully fit again." Breast cancer is the most common form of cancer in the UK. Nearly 57,000 people diagnosed with it every year, most are women, however about 390 of these cases are in in seven women in the UK develop breast cancer during their lifetime and it is most common in women over the age of 50. Phoebe McCulloh, a clinical nurse specialist in breast screening at Southmead Hospital, told BBC Radio Bristol: "It's not just about finding lumps. You want to look out for any changes to the skin."That could be brushes, that could be an orange peel-like texture to the skin, very tiny dimples. It could be the skin sort of puckering or pulling in.""It could also be any changes to the nipple or areola and that could look like nipple inversion, fluid from the nipple or redness."As part of the "Wake Up Call" live broadcast series on BBC Radio Bristol's Breakfast Show presenter, Joe Sims, has been hearing from people who have had breast cancer in the hope it will encourage listeners to get checked for serious health conditions.
