A whale is seen ‘gaping’ | Photo credit: Hannah Pittore via Macquarie University Researchers are using tourist videos and drone footage to understand a rare humpback whale behavior called “gaping,” where the animals open their mouths wide, even when there is no food around. When humpback whales feed, they open their jaw wide to take in large amounts of water filled with krill or small fish, then push the water back out through their baleen plates, which trap the prey inside. However, a new paper co-authored by Macquarie University lecturer and whale researcher Dr. Vanessa Pirotta describes instances of whales “gaping” — holding their mouths open even when no food is present — and the reason for this behavior remains unclear. According to the paper, published this month, images and videos shared online by tourists, drone users, and whale-watching operators have played a key role in identifying and documenting this newly observed “gaping” behavior.…