LEVIATHAN FORENSICS—A necropsy of this dead sperm whale, which beached on Nantucket in 2002, revealed patches of dead bone most likely caused by nitrogen bubbles in decompression illness, or the bends. The finding launched further study by two Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution researchers, who discovered that decompression illness may be a chronic, progressive disease among deep-diving sperm whales. (Photo by Michael Moore, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution)[back]
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