WHALE BIRTH DECLINE TIED TO GLOBAL WARMING - WHALE BIRTH DECLINE TIED TO GLOBAL WARMING By observing more than 1,800 right whales in the southern Atlantic, researchers have determined that changes in climate are affecting t - Pew Institute for Ocean Science

WHALE BIRTH DECLINE TIED TO GLOBAL WARMING
By observing more than 1,800 right whales in the southern Atlantic, researchers have determined that changes in climate are affecting the whales' reproductive success. The problem, they believe, is not that whales suffer directly from warm conditions, but that their food supply--mainly krill--does. In a study published in Biology Letters, scientists compared sea-surface temperatures in the southwest Atlantic to their index of the yearly calving success of whales that breed off the Argentine coast. The researchers found a strong correlation between the number of right whale calves born and changes in sea-surface temperature in the autumn of the preceding year. Previous data support a significant relationship between sea-surface temperature and the breeding success of krill-loving gentoo penguins. Lead author Russell Leaper says the new study has implications for whaling policy as well.
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2006/01/0118_060118_right_whales.html