Humpback Whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) ~ Navigating the Way

“Let us lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, fixing our eyes on Jesus.” (Hebrews 12v1-2)

Humpback Whales migrate farther than any other mammal on this planet, and they do so with astonishing accuracy.  Their trajectory is reportedly less than 1 degree off at any given time during their 6,000 mile journey.(1)

How are these whales capable of such precision?  

Sea turtles often follow a particular current.  This is impossible for humpbacks as sea currents are highly variable for the duration of the trip.  

Sharks take cues from the earth’s magnetic fields.  Not so for the humpback whales; magnetic north changes as much at 12% along the way. 
  
Migratory birds often follow the sun.  Yet the sun alone cannot explain the whales’ near-perfect navigation.  In a report from “Biology Letters” (2), humpbacks from the same area were found to follow similar headings despite seeing the sun in a different place above.  Contrariwise, they followed different headings when the sun was in similar positions. 

Travis Horton from the University of Canterbury conducted a recent study in an attempt to solve the mystery.  For all his data, he was left will still more questions.  He said: “They are orienting with something outside of themselves, not something internal.”(3)  But what?

Astronomer Michael J. West from the Maria Mitchell Observatory has another idea.  In a recently published article(4), he raises the hypothesis that whales use stars to navigate, much like the earliest human explorers.  Yet human eyes are designed to see in the air, and things become blurry under the surface.(5)  How could whales see above water?  Astonishingly, research suggests that whales are able to change the shape of their eyes.  They 'squint' above water in order to see.(6)  By referencing bodies such as Betelgeuse and the north star, humpback whales would have a never-changing navigation system.  It's just a theory, but one that's gaining popularity among marine biologists.

Life is a journey.  In a sea of ideas and experiences, our hearts are constantly moving, our minds learning and changing direction, our spirits searching for truth.  How can we stay on course?  Or how, we might ask, how have we got so far off course?  Will we, like the humpback whales, look to something outside of ourselves?  Or will we follow our internal thoughts and emotions in an effort to find truth?  These are hazardous times for those who follow the Way (as the early Christians called it).  The waters become murky, and many have gone off course.  The sound of praise-songs has gone silent in many churches, overtaken by battle cries for progress.  Volatile currents batter us as we move, searching for each other, searching for God.  But the heavens are still open.  Light twinkles softly from afar.  If we would only remember look up, we would see that northern star, that promise, that beacon of hope!  Let us follow that recognizable Light of the World.  Soon enough, we will find ourselves home.

"If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him.  But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind." (James 1v5&6)

(1) http://www.livescience.com/13793-humpback-whales-precise-migration-mystery.html

(2) http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-1378791/Map-No-thanks-Humpback-whales-use-sun-moon-stars-navigate-ocean.html#ixzz3fofvVoLx 

(3) http://physicsbuzz.physicscentral.com/2013/09/navigating-with-stars-dung-beetles-and.html

(4) http://arxiv.org/pdf/1309.2722v1.pdf

(5) Bruce, Vicki; Georgeson, Mark, A.; & Green, Patrick, R., 2003, Visual Perception: Physiology, Psychology and Ecology (Psychology Press)

(6) Mass, Alla M. & Supin, Alexander, Ya. 2007, Adaptive Features of Aquatic Mammals’ Eye, The Anatomical Record, 290, 701