Buzz
A SnotBot drone captures samples discreetly from a breaching whale. C. Miller Ocean AllianceResearching whales presents significant challenges. Boat engines often distress these creatures, causing them to flee when they spot researchers approaching with biopsy tools. This can result in wasted time and resources. Alternatively, examining deceased whales is not only disheartening but also less effective for understanding living whales' health, such as diseases, pregnancy hormones, and environmental toxins.
Fortunately, a groundbreaking innovation has emerged to study whales, proving that science never rests!
The Parley SnotBot (SnotBot is a registered trademark) is a drone equipped with a video camera and petri dishes designed to collect mucus expelled by whales through their blowholes when they surface for air. For example, the lungs of a blue whale are as large as a midsized car, producing a significant amount of mucus and hot air with each breath. The SnotBot simply flies over to gather this valuable sample.
Dr. Iain Kerr, CEO of the nonprofit Ocean Alliance, explains via email: "SnotBot is a highly unconventional tool. While whales expel mucus upward, the drone generates downward airflow to stay airborne, which should theoretically disperse the snot. Additionally, the petri dishes are mounted on the drone's top, not the bottom. So, how does it work? We approach the whale from behind as it moves forward, allowing the mucus to arc upward and settle onto the drone's top, where the petri dishes are positioned."
This illustration depicts a whale breaching, the SnotBot collecting mucus mid-flight, and the whale diving back into the ocean, completely unharmed and unaware of the process.
C. Miller Ocean AllianceYou might wonder, why are scientists interested in whale mucus? Whale snot contains actual whale cells, which hold DNA, microbiome samples, and hormones. These elements provide insights into the whale's reproductive activity, stress levels, and more. Previously, researchers used biopsy darts to extract a small piece of flesh, but this method only offered historical data. The SnotBot, however, provides real-time information, revolutionizing whale research.
The SnotBot hovers above the whale as it exhales through its blowhole, collecting breath condensate and recording the whale's movements on video. Controlled remotely by scientists from a distant boat, the drone provides much of the same data as the biopsy method but at a fraction of the cost—around $4,500 per drone compared to the exorbitant expenses of a research vessel—while significantly reducing stress on the whales.
Before 2015, it was believed that whales and dolphins could only breathe through their blowholes. This changed when one dolphin with a malfunctioning blowhole was seen breathing through its mouth.
