Whales Transport Thousands of Tons of Nutrients Across Oceans, Supporting Marine Ecosystems

How whale urine benefits the ocean ecosystem

Great whales can transport 4,000 tons of nitrogen annually to tropical coastal areas.

The stunning power of whale pee

A single whale can produce more than 250 gallons of urine in a day. It helps sustain life across the ocean.

'Whale Conveyor Belt' Moves Tons of Nutrients Across the Ocean—Through Urine

When whales migrate from their cold feeding grounds to warmer breeding waters, they carry tons of nutrients in their urine.

Biology: Whales make enormous annual journeys across the oceans. Substances they ingest in cold zones are released in the tropics. Migrating…

Discovery: The great whale pee funnel moves vital nutrients

Scientists have discovered that whales move nutrients thousands of miles -- in their urine -- from as far as Alaska to Hawaii. These tons of nitrogen support the health of tropical ecosystems and fish, where nitrogen can be limited. They call this movement of nutrients a 'conveyor belt' or 'the great whale pee funnel.' In some places, like Hawaii, the input of nutrients from whales is bigger than from local sources. It's critical to tropical oce…

UVM study shows whale urine contributes to healthy ocean ecosystems

New findings show that a whale's nutrients can travel thousands of miles to low-nutrient ecosystems.