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me_irl
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this post was submitted on 05 May 2025
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me_irl
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How often does this happen? Has to be some kind of natural selection for whales. The whales that have an internal clock on how long they can stay under till death?
I believe it's the most common cause of death for old whales (for all whales it's sadly collisions with ships). They become too weak to swim to the surface and then just sink into the deep... horrible way to go.
I’d say it’s more peaceful than drowning. Anyone who did asphyxiation type stuff as kids would recognise that you just drift away. Drowning is panic, asphyxiation is drowsiness.
Yes, they have an internal clock of sorts. IIRC current theories are that they can sense changes in blood chemistry as their blood loses access to oxygen.