Did you know that whales help keep the ocean healthy by spreading nutrients far and wide?
These massive creatures don’t just swim across the seas—they also play a key role in moving essential nutrients from deep, cold waters to warm, tropical areas through their pee, poop, and even their shedding skin.
Whales keep the ocean fertile
Scientists have long known that when whales feed deep underwater and then poop near the surface, they provide food for tiny ocean plants called phytoplankton.
These plants are the base of the ocean’s food chain, feeding fish, sharks, and many other sea creatures.
Now, new research from the University of Vermont shows that whales also transport huge amounts of nutrients across entire ocean basins.
Every year, whales move about 4,000 tons of nitrogen from cold, nutrient-rich waters to tropical regions like Hawaii.
They also carry more than 45,000 tons of organic material. Before humans started hunting whales in large numbers, these nutrient transfers would have been much greater—three times larger than they are today!
A giant conveyor belt
Whales act like a moving conveyor belt for nutrients. Many species, like humpback whales, feed in places like Alaska, where they eat krill and herring and gain about 30 pounds per day. Then, when winter comes, they migrate thousands of miles to tropical waters to breed and give birth.
During their time in warm waters, they don’t eat, but they still release nutrients through their urine, shedding skin, and even their placentas when they give birth. For example, a feeding fin whale can produce over 250 gallons of urine daily, packed with nitrogen that helps support coral reefs and fish populations.
Scientists call this process the “great whale conveyor belt” because whales collect nutrients from large feeding areas and release them in smaller breeding zones. This is especially important for places like Hawaii, where the water is clear, signaling low nutrient levels. Whales help fertilize these waters, making them more productive.
Whales shape the planet
Whales have the longest migrations of any mammal, traveling thousands of miles between feeding and breeding grounds. Because of their massive size, they move nutrients on a planetary scale—something no other animal does.
Before industrial whaling, this process was even stronger, as there were many more whales in the ocean. Some species, like blue whales, are still struggling to recover from past hunting, and scientists are still learning about their breeding areas and migration routes.
Just like birds fertilize islands with their poop, whales fertilize the oceans. They act as nature’s gardeners, helping to spread the nutrients that make marine life thrive. Protecting whales means protecting the health of our oceans—and that benefits everyone, from tiny plankton to the fish we eat!
