The Malaysian Insider :: Features
The Malaysian Insider :: Features |
| Killer whales migrate, study finds, but why? Posted: 29 Oct 2011 02:06 AM PDT  Two killer whales in the austral seas off the Crozet archipelago. — AFP pic Rather, these fearsome predators at the apex of the marine food chain traverse the sea at top speed — slowing as they reach warmer climes — to exfoliate, the study speculates. They are driven, in other words, by the urge or need to make their skin all shiny and new. Despite our intense fascination with seal-chomping orcas, next to nothing was known about their long-haul movements, or whether they migrate at all. To find out more, John Durban and Robert Pitman of the US National Marine Fisheries Service fitted a dozen so-called "type B" killer whales off the west coast of the Antarctic Peninsula with satellite transmitters. In January 2009, the scientists used bolt-shooting crossbows to attached tags to the five-tonne mammals' dorsal fins from a distance of five to 15 metres. "Type B" orcas inhabit the inshore waters of Antarctica near pack ice, the better to feed on seals and penguins. Type A killer whales prefer open water and a diet of minke whales, and the smaller, fish-eating type C is most common in the eastern Antarctic. Half the satellite tags stopped working after three weeks, but the remaining six revealed a remarkable and unexpected wanderlust over the following two years. "Our tagged whales followed the most direct path to the nearest warm waters north of the subtropical convergence, with a gradual slowing of swim speed in progressively warmer water," the authors note. The whales made a beeline, cruising at up to 10 km/hr (six mph), across the southwest Atlantic east of the Falkland Islands to the subtropical waters off the coasts of Uruguay and southern Brazil. The study, published in the British Royal Society's journal Biology Letters, provides the first direct evidence of long-distance migration by killer whales. But why they do it remains something of a mystery. The speed and duration of the voyages, undertaken individually, did not leave enough time for prolonged foraging, and would have been too demanding for a new-born calf. "Remarkably, one whale returned to Antarctica after completing a 9,400 kilometre trip in just 42 days," the study said. The varied departure dates, between early February and late April, also suggested these expeditions were not annual migrations for feeding or breeding. Which is where skin comes into the picture. Durban and Pitman suspect that killer whales move into warmer waters in order to shed a layer — along with an encrustation of single-celled algae called diatoms — without freezing to death. Orcas are the smallest cetaceans — a group including whales and dolphins — which live for extended periods in subzero Antarctic waters. Replacing and repairing outer skin in waters where the surface temperature is minus 1.9 degree Celsius may be dangerous, even lethal. Surface temperatures at the killer whales' tropical destinations, by contrast, were a balmy 20.9 to 24.2 C. "We hypothesise that these migrations were thermally motivated," the authors conclude. Killer whales (Orcinus orca) are the most widely distributed cetacean and perhaps mammal species — in the world. — AFP-Relaxnews Full content generated by Get Full RSS. |
| Russian elite celebrate Bolshoi’s lavish revival Posted: 28 Oct 2011 10:56 PM PDT MOSCOW, Oct 29 — Russia's Bolshoi Theatre re-opened yesterday with an exclusive party to celebrate a luxurious renovation that has taken six years, cost US$700 million (RM2.17 billion) and revived a revered cultural symbol scarred by centuries of use and abuse. Politicians, billionaires, film directors and fashion designers of the Russian elite strolled the red carpet leading up to the cream-colored, eight-columned ballet and opera house that began life as a pet project by Empress Catherine the Great who founded it in 1776, the year the United States was born.  People look at the illuminated Bolshoi Theatre on the eve of its reopening in Moscow on October 27, 2011. — Reuters pic Medvedev paid tribute to all those involved in restoring lustre to a building that has been a physical witness to the rule of tsars, their brutal overthrow in the Bolshevik revolution, two world wars, the rise of the Soviet state, the collapse of communism and Russia's latest resurgence in a capitalist world. "I would like to thank all those who took part in the rebirth of our miracle, our great national brand — the Bolshoi Theatre," he told guests including Russian Orthodox Church Patriarch Kirill, former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev and Russian ballet legend Maya Plisetskaya, seated under a six-metre chandelier. He then took a seat in a gold-lined box where tsars and Soviet leaders sat for performances. Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, who is seeking a return to the presidency in a vote next March, did not attend the performance as he had a prior arrangement with a financial policing body, his spokesman said. About 100 musicians and opera singers in orange and white hard hats and workmen's overalls took to the stage, where they burst into song performing "Slavsya" by the Russian 19th-century composer Mikhail Glinka. Outside, Kremlin guards clad in charcoal grey wool overcoats encircled a Bolshoi all lit up in blue and gold for the event which Russian art enthusiasts hope will cement Moscow's position as the arbiter of the classics. "The atmosphere is fantastic, the fact the theatre got finished is great," gushed Valentin Yudashkin, one of Russia's top fashion designers. The theatre, which has survived three fires, bombing in World War Two and was at one time perched above an underground river, has been restored to its opulent Tsarist beginnings, covered in gold leaf, and had cutting-edge acoustics added. After years of neglect and heavy use during Soviet times, the theatre was closed in 2005 for restoration. The Bolshoi Ballet troupe continued performing on the neighbouring, but smaller new stage. Yesterday's opening show featured top dancers such as Svetlana Zakharova and Maria Alexandrova, as well as guest opera singers including France's Natalie Dessay and Lithuanian soprano Violeta Urmana. A totally Russian repertoire was performed including pieces by composers Alexander Borodin, Dmitry Shostakovich and Sergei Prokofiev. Elaborate set changes and an electronic backdrop showing black-and-white animations of the Bolshoi were part of the two-hour gala performance, receiving rapturous applause from the 2,000 guests. Moscow city centre streets were grid-locked after security was beefed up to allow the guests in for a thoroughly Russian evening, which was broadcast live in Russia, Europe and the United States and live on video website Youtube. Italian actress Monica Bellucci, swathed in diamonds and dressed in a strapless crimson dress, joined Russian officials as they crowded into the theatre, lined with plush red chairs that have been tested for sound absorption. Rare pine wood applied to the walls also helps improve the quality of the sound, which has won praise from leading opera singers, and even two of the nearest stations of Moscow's sprawling metro will be soundproofed. The Bolshoi had world-class acoustics before the Communist era, when sound-reflecting gold was scraped off and stolen and the hollow cylinder underneath the orchestra, thought to be impractical, was filled with cement. Rigid Soviet-era seats have been replaced in the latest renovation with fewer, wider and more comfortable ones, cutting the number for the main stage to 1,720 from 2,200. But not everyone was pleased with the grand revamp. The Bolshoi's principal dancer Nikolai Tsiskaridze has repeatedly told local media the old theatre's interior has been replaced with even cheaper material. — Reuters Full content generated by Get Full RSS. |
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