PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — A team from the University of Southern Maine and the conservation organization Ocean Alliance is headed to the Gulf of Mexico to take tissue samples from whales to determine what toxic substances they’ve been exposed to.
They’ll also be doing cell cultures to find out what it takes to make whales sick.
Scientific Director John Wise says the project was in the works before the massive oil spill, but that it has taken on greater urgency because of the spill.
Wise says researchers will use special equipment to take tissue samples from four types of whale: humpbacks, sperm, Bryde’s (BROO’-tah) and killer whales.
The team is leaving Saturday aboard the Ocean Alliance’s laboratory-equipped sailboat Odyssey.
Send questions/comments to the editors.
Success. Please wait for the page to reload. If the page does not reload within 5 seconds, please refresh the page.
Enter your email and password to access comments.
Hi, to comment on stories you must . This profile is in addition to your subscription and website login.
Already have a commenting profile? .
Invalid username/password.
Please check your email to confirm and complete your registration.
Only subscribers are eligible to post comments. Please subscribe or login first for digital access. Here’s why.
Use the form below to reset your password. When you've submitted your account email, we will send an email with a reset code.