WINTER FLAB
Just the other day, I talked about the efficiency of the so-called blubber layer when it comes to keeping a whale warm while swimming in the cold waters of the North Atlantic. However, there's more to this fat layer than just its superb insulation attributes against freezing temperatures.
While this blubber layer is certainly great and reliable for maintaining the body temperature regardless of the depth or temperature the whale is swimming in, it also stores energy. Most of the whales species we encounter around Iceland are migratory and visit us for a few months a year only.
While most of them are here between late spring to late autumn, they feed on as much as they can, build up more and more blubber and doing so, gain fat reserves for the months to come in warmer waters – waters that won't supply the needed amount of food or where food is often unavailable: their breeding grounds!
Once arriving to tropical temperatures, whales break down that fat reserves. The energy stored in the blubber is made up of both proteins and fat. Especially mothers who have migrated south to give birth depend on these resources as they will stay away from their feeding grounds for several months while having to supply energy to their own body as well as nurse the young calf.
Last, this magnificent blubber layer also helps whales to stay buoyant as it is less dense than the surrounding ocean water. Hence, these gentle giants naturally float! If that wasn't the case, they would actually require even more energy and more muscles to move and succeed gravity – meaning they would have to feed on an even greater amount of food while here!
In short, the blubber layer is one of the reasons animals of these sizes and weights are actually able to survive.
However, don’t let these facts mislead you: The thickness of the blubber itself does not mean better insulation, energy storage, or buoyancy – all that actually depends on the chemical properties of the blubber!
- Sarah