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Natural Phenomena

Krill Swarm

Animal Behavior and Adaptation

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A dense aggregation of small, shrimp-like krill that can extend for kilometers and contain many millions of individuals per cubic meter of water in the densest patches, a defensive and feeding behavior that concentrates krill species such as Antarctic krill into some of the largest animal biomass aggregations on Earth. These swarms form the base of the Southern Ocean food web, sustaining whales, seals, penguins and fish directly, and their scale is such that a single large swarm has been estimated to weigh more than the combined mass of the humans on the planet.

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