The study focused on a handful of baleen species — namely, gray whales, humpback whales and right whales — which display “traditional migratory patterns,” moving from colder waters in the summer to warmer waters in the winter. For example, humpbacks in the North Pacific migrate annually from the Gulf of Alaska to the coast of Hawaii.

You’ve heard of the butterfly effect — the idea that a tiny flap of wings can trigger a hurricane on the other side of the world. Now, imagine a whale effect. Previous studies have found that whale poop helps fertilize the ocean,