Australia’s humpback whale population is increasing by more than 10 per cent a year, and University of Queensland researchers are going to extreme lengths to find out why.
UQ School of Veterinary Science PhD student Fletcher Mingramm is collecting samples in the wild, but it’s no easy feat catching the whale “blow” – a mix of mucous, breath and water that a whale can spout up to six metres into the air when surfacing or diving.