A Giant’s Dance: Underwater Social and Vocal Behavior of Humpback Whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) Recorded on the Northern Coast of Ecuador

Humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) produce an array of social behaviors on their tropical breeding grounds. The most commonly reported behaviors are surface active displays, which include tail, pectoral, or full body slapping events. Social interactions also comprise a diverse range of subsurf...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published inAquatic mammals Vol. 45; no. 4; pp. 456 - 464
Main Authors Oña, Javier, Duque, Esteban, Garland, Ellen C., Seger, Kerri, Narváez, Martín, Maldonado, Julia, Denkinger, Judith
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Moline Aquatic Mammals Journal, NFP 01.01.2019
Aquatic Mammals
Subjects
Acoustics
Animal behavior
Aquatic mammals
Breeding grounds
Breeding sites
Cetacea
Dance
Displays (Marketing)
Ecology
Marine mammals
Megaptera novaeangliae
Reproductive behaviour
Social behavior
Social conditions
Social factors
Social interactions
Society
Tropical climate
Underwater
Vocalization behavior
Whales
Whales & whaling
Hawaii
Ecuador
California
United States > US
San Francisco California
Online AccessGet full text

Cover

More Information
Summary:Humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) produce an array of social behaviors on their tropical breeding grounds. The most commonly reported behaviors are surface active displays, which include tail, pectoral, or full body slapping events. Social interactions also comprise a diverse range of subsurface behaviors that include calls. The function of most social behaviors within humpback whale groups remains unclear; whales spend most of their time underwater, and their behavioral repertoire is, thus, obscured due to inherent difficulties in documentation in this environment. Behavioral studies have used new underwater technologies to provide important information about the humpback whale mating system and social structure of transient/fluid or stable social groups on their tropical breeding grounds. Herein, Oña et al describe a series of interactions between members of a whale triad that included social calls, likely bodily contact, and simultaneous or synchronous underwater movements.
ISSN:0167-5427
1996-7292
DOI:10.1578/AM.45.4.2019.456