Benthic Prey in a Bowhead Whale from the Northern Bering Sea
- 1 January 1984
- journal article
- Published by The Arctic Institute of North America in ARCTIC
- Vol. 37 (2) , 166-168
- https://doi.org/10.14430/arctic2183
Abstract
Stomach contents were examined from a bowhead whale, Balaena mysticetus, killed at Gambell, Alaska, on 1 May 1982. It contained an estimated 20-40 litres of recently ingested prey, principally gammarid amphipods (91.7% of the volume of a 157-ml subsample) and cumaceans (7%). All identified prey were primarily epibenthic forms. The stomach of this whale was significant in several respects: (1) it contained the largest amount of food recorded in any whale taken and examined in spring; (2) it provided the first direct evidence of bowheads feeding in the Bering Sea; and (3) the contents indicated that benthic prey are sometimes intentionally fed upon. Key words: Balaena mysticetus, benthic prey, Bering Sea, bowhead whale, feeding, gammarid amphipodsKeywords
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