North Atlantic right whales: terms and definitions

Callosities are white patches of rough skin that are colonised by whale lice (cyamids). Because they form unique patterns, callosities are used to identify and name whales, like a fingerprint. Identifying individual whales is vital for tracking the health of both the individuals and the entire population.

Dimethyl sulphide

North Atlantic right whales feed on copepods, a form of tiny marine zooplankton. These copepods feed on phytoplankton, which, when consumed, produce natural chemical compounds, including dimethyl sulphide. Scientists believe that whales use the odour produced by dimethyl sulphide to track down their prey.

This knowledge has become extremely useful when tracking the North Atlantic right whale because researchers can look for concentrations of dimethyl sulphide to locate these marine mammals. This helps conservationists monitor whale activity and improve conservation efforts. Tracking the whale's food source also offers a much less invasive method of tracking compared to traditional tagging.

Baleen whale

The North Atlantic right whale is a baleen whale, which means it has baleen plates instead of teeth. The plates are made up of keratin-similar to fingernails and hooves-and hang in rows from each side of the mouth. Baleen plates are used to filter plankton from the water, allowing the whales to feed. Each individual plate can reach 5.2 metres (17 feet) long, with up to 400 plates along each row.