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jarrettbrown t1_j9yhbtt wrote

I've been saying for a while now that it's plausible (I use the Mythbusters scale here that goes busted-plausible-confirmed), but there's something else besides the sonar that's killing them. Some woman who's an artist based in South Jersey keeps posting this article and while it makes sense, there's a lot more that doesn't right now. If the sonar is scaring the whales, then what's killing them? Not the sonar itself, that's for sure. Either they're running into something or it's something else.

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seancoffey37 t1_j9yhv5m wrote

Especially since the sonar that's supposedly scaring them has been used for decades by many larger boats

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jarrettbrown t1_j9yk0i7 wrote

Pretty much. I've almost asked her if she's a marine biologist a few times, but I don't wanna start shit with people on a photo sharing app. But then again, she's just a shitty artist who has done some armchair research.

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seancoffey37 t1_j9ykbhc wrote

I can relate to that. You just need to choose your battles sometimes.

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HumanShadow t1_j9z9ixc wrote

Before everybody joined Facebook I used to think it was anti-social to post rants that might alienate people. I especially thought it was anti-social to antagonize my social network. Then everybody else joined Facebook and what I actually learned is people hate skeptics. And it's actually not socially acceptable to fact check people or doubt their posts. If only they realized that nobody really cares about each other on social media.

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Wandego t1_j9yjaxi wrote

Sonar affects whale hearing which they use for navigation. Powerful sonar (there are differences in the frequency and volume) has been proven to kill whales. All man-made ocean sounds affect whale behavior, but I agree that more evidence is needed to prove the current activities are related to whale deaths.

I do believe the most vocal parties in NJ are doing it for selfish, provincial reasons and not any genuine care for the earth or wildlife.

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jarrettbrown t1_j9ykr97 wrote

Oh totally. This article come up during one of my searches and I kinda knew this already (I forget how, but I read something similar a while ago), but there's other things that are probably involved in this. Example: if the sonar is scaring the whales, what are they running into?

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Wandego t1_j9yqk5h wrote

Whales use sound to navigate so the extra loud sonar blinds and scares them. They swim to get away and end up on the beach or maybe have lingering physical damage causing distress and eventually death. I don’t know if this is the case with the sonar mapping here, but I’m hoping the marine biologists are looking into it.

I am not a marine biologist, but I think of it this way: Imagine you are walking outside, minding your own fucking business, and are suddenly accosted by a sound so loud it bursts your ear drums and blinds you. You would run to get away from the sound, but being unable to use your ears or eyes to navigate your escape, you could run into traffic or off a cliff, or some other dangerous situation.

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SuperAlloy t1_ja0ywz4 wrote

Bird flu. It's already jumped to seals. That's my wild ass guess at least.

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