The robots can hover over marine mammals and gather all sorts of information in a way that’s less invasive to the animals than researchers trying to approach them by boat or plane

Gathering snot is one of many ways that drones are being used to study whales. In the past 10 to 15 years, drone technology has made great strides, becoming affordable and easy to use. This has been a boon for researchers. Scientists “are finding applications for drones in virtually every aspect of marine mammal research,” says Joshua Stewart, an ecologist at Oregon State University’s Marine Mammal Institute.