scholarly journals Song function in humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae): the use of song in the social interactions of singers on migration

2009 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joshua Nathan Smith
Keyword(s):  
Social Interactions ◽  
Megaptera Novaeangliae ◽  
Humpback Whales ◽  
The Social

scholarly journals Social survival: humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) use social structure to partition ecological niches within proposed critical habitat

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Janie Wray ◽  
Eric Keen ◽  
Éadin N. O’Mahony
Keyword(s):  
Habitat Use ◽  
Social Structure ◽  
Niche Partitioning ◽  
Megaptera Novaeangliae ◽  
Humpback Whales ◽  
Baleen Whales ◽  
Fjord System ◽  
The Social ◽  
Social Niche

ABSTRACTAnimal culture and social bonds are relevant to wildlife conservation because they influence patterns of geography, behavior, and strategies of survival. Numerous examples of socially-driven habitat partitioning and ecological-niche specialization can be found among vertebrates, including toothed whales. But such social-ecological dynamics, described here as ‘social niche partitioning’, are not known among baleen whales, whose societies -- particularly on foraging grounds -- are largely perceived as unstructured and incidental to matters of habitat use and conservation. However, through 16 years of behavioral and photo-identification observations of humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) feeding within a fjord system in British Columbia, Canada, we have documented long-term pair bonds (lasting up to 12 years) as well as a complex societal structure, which corresponds closely to persistent patterns in feeding strategy, long-term site fidelity (extended seasonal occupancy and annual rate of return up to 75%), specific geographic preferences within the fjord system, and other forms of habitat use. Randomization tests of network congruency and clustering algorithms were used to test for overlap in patterns of social structure and habitat use, which confirmed the occurrence of social niche partitioning on the feeding grounds of this baleen whale. In addition, we document the extensive practice of group bubble net feeding in Pacific Canada. This coordinated feeding behavior was found to strongly mediate the social structure and habitat use within this humpback whale society. Additionally, during our 2004 – 2019 study, we observed a shift in social network structure in 2010 – 2012, which corresponded with environmental and demographic shifts including a sudden decline in the population’s calving rate. Our findings indicate that the social lives of humpback whales, and perhaps baleen whales generally, are more complex than previously supposed and should be a primary consideration in the assessment of potential impacts to important habitat.

scholarly journals Social survival: Humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) use social structure to partition ecological niches within proposed critical habitat

PLoS ONE ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (6) ◽  
pp. e0245409
Author(s):  
Janie Wray ◽  
Eric Keen ◽  
Éadin N. O’Mahony
Keyword(s):  
Habitat Use ◽  
Social Structure ◽  
Niche Partitioning ◽  
Megaptera Novaeangliae ◽  
Humpback Whales ◽  
Baleen Whales ◽  
Fjord System ◽  
The Social ◽  
Social Niche

Animal culture and social bonds are relevant to wildlife conservation because they influence patterns of geography, behavior, and strategies of survival. Numerous examples of socially-driven habitat partitioning and ecological-niche specialization can be found among vertebrates, including toothed whales. But such social-ecological dynamics, described here as ‘social niche partitioning’, are not known among baleen whales, whose societies—particularly on foraging grounds—are largely perceived as unstructured and incidental to matters of habitat use and conservation. However, through 16 years of behavioral observations and photo-identifications of humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) feeding within a fjord system in the Canadian Pacific (primarily within Gitga’at First Nation waters), we have documented long-term pair bonds (up to 12 years) as well as a complex societal structure, which corresponds closely to persistent patterns in feeding strategy, long-term site fidelity (extended occupancy and annual rate of return up to 75%), specific geographic preferences within the fjord system, and other forms of habitat use. Randomization tests of network congruency and clustering algorithms were used to test for overlap in patterns of social structure and habitat use, which confirmed the occurrence of social niche partitioning on the feeding grounds of this baleen whale species. In addition, we document the extensive practice of group bubble net feeding in Pacific Canada. This coordinated feeding behavior was found to strongly mediate the social structure and habitat use within this humpback whale society. Additionally, during our 2004–2019 study, we observed a shift in social network structure in 2010–2012, which corresponded with environmental and demographic shifts including a sudden decline in the population’s calving rate. Our findings indicate that the social lives of humpback whales, and perhaps baleen whales generally, are more complex than previously supposed and should be a primary consideration in the assessment of potential impacts to important habitat.

scholarly journals Social Behaviour of Humpback Whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) in Hervey Bay, Eastern Australia, a Preferential Female Stopover During the Southern Migration

2021 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Trish Franklin ◽  
Wally Franklin ◽  
Lyndon Brooks ◽  
Peter Harrison ◽  
Adam A. Pack ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Social Behaviour ◽  
Humpback Whale ◽  
Megaptera Novaeangliae ◽  
Humpback Whales ◽  
Site Specific ◽  
Factors Influencing ◽  
The Social ◽  
Eastern Australia ◽  
Competitive Behaviour ◽  
Males And Females

Agonistic competitive social behaviour in humpback whales [Megaptera novaeangliae (Borowski, 1781)] has been extensively studied and reported in previous research. However, non-agonistic social behaviour in humpback whale pods has not been systematically studied. We investigated the social behaviour of 3,949 humpback whale pods over a period of 14 years during August, September, and October in Hervey Bay (Queensland, eastern Australia), a preferential female stopover early in the southern migration. Modelling and analyses of the data examined the factors influencing the occurrence and timing of non-agonistic social behaviour pods, agonistic competitive pods and newly associated pods. Non-agonistic social behaviour was observed more frequently during August when mature females, including early pregnant and resting females, co-occur and socially interact with immature males and females. Overall, relatively few mature males visit Hervey Bay. Agonistic competitive behaviour was observed with increasing frequency during September and October when mother-calf pods, with few escorts predominated. Mother-calf pods in Hervey Bay spent most of their time alone involved in maternal care. Agonistic competitive behaviour is related to the decreasing numbers of potentially oestrous females toward the end of the season. Non-agonistic social behaviour and agonistic competitive behaviour were more frequently observed in larger and newly associated pods. Overall, non-agonistic social behaviour pods were more prevalent than agonistic competitive social behaviour pods. The results of this study substantiate that non-agonistic social behaviour may be more prevalent than aggressive agonistic social behaviour in site-specific locations and habitats, depending upon the classes and timings of humpback whales using such habitats.

Spatial distribution, habitat utilization, and social interactions of humpback whales, Megaptera novaeangliae, off Hawai'i, determined using acoustic and visual techniques

1995 ◽  
Vol 73 (6) ◽  
pp. 1134-1146 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. S. Frankel ◽  
C. W. Clark ◽  
L. M. Herman ◽  
C. M. Gabriele
Keyword(s):  
Spatial Distribution ◽  
Social Interactions ◽  
Separation Distance ◽  
Habitat Utilization ◽  
Megaptera Novaeangliae ◽  
Humpback Whales ◽  
Visual Methods ◽  
Acoustic Data ◽  
The Mean ◽  
Water Depths

Acoustic and visual methods were used to track and observe humpback whales off the island of Hawai'i. Sixty-two singing whales were located acoustically in water depths from 10 to 305 fathoms (mean 126 fathoms; 1 fathom = 1.828 m). This indicates that singers are not confined within the 100-fathom contour, although nearshore waters had a higher density of singers. The separation distance between singers (mean 5.1 km) was found to be significantly greater than that between nonsinging singletons (mean 2.1 km), supporting the hypothesis that song functions to maintain spacing between singers. The mean speed of singers determined from visual data was 1.79 km/h and from acoustic data 1.6 km/h. Some singers actively swam while singing. Other singers continued singing while affiliating with or being joined by other whales. The correlation between breaching and the cessation of singing suggests that the sounds of aerial behavior can convey information to other whales. These observations suggest the need to expand the traditional interpretations of the behavior of singing humpback whales obtained from visual observations alone.

Aggressive behavior between humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) wintering in Hawaiian waters

1984 ◽  
Vol 62 (10) ◽  
pp. 1922-1937 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. Scott Baker ◽  
Louis M. Herman
Keyword(s):  
Megaptera Novaeangliae ◽  
Humpback Whales ◽  
Pair Bonds ◽  
The Social ◽  
Newborn Calves ◽  
Males And Females ◽  
Peak Abundance ◽  
Physical Displacement ◽  
Sexually Mature ◽  
Winter Breeding

Humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) wintering in Hawaiian waters engage in strenuous aggression toward con-specifics. The social context and sex of individuals involved suggest that aggression is the result of male–male competition for sexually mature females, including cows with newborn calves. Characteristic behaviors associated with aggression occur in a roughly hierarchical scaling of intensity and include broadside displays, underwater exhalations, head lunges (in which the throat is inflated and enlarged), physical displacement, and charge–strikes. Humpback whales do not form stable pair bonds during the winter breeding season; females are seen serially and simultaneously with multiple males and males are seen serially with multiple females. Repeated observations of individually identified whales indicate that escorting and singing are interchangeable reproductive roles of mature males. Incidents of aggression show a seasonal increase and decrease that parallel changes in abundance and average pod size. A seasonal peak in the frequency of aggression is probably related to an increase in population density and to changes in the reproductive physiology of mature males and females. It is suggested that singing may function, in part, to synchronize ovulation in females with the peak abundance of mature males on the wintering grounds.

Temporal pattern of humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) group structure around Abrolhos Archipelago breeding region, Bahia, Brazil

2007 ◽  
Vol 87 (1) ◽  
pp. 87-92 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria E. Morete ◽  
Tatiana L. Bisi ◽  
Sergio Rosso
Keyword(s):  
Social Status ◽  
Temporal Pattern ◽  
Group Composition ◽  
Group Structure ◽  
Temporal Patterns ◽  
Humpback Whale ◽  
Megaptera Novaeangliae ◽  
Humpback Whales ◽  
Migration Patterns ◽  
The Social

To characterize temporal patterns of humpback group structure around Abrolhos Archipelago, Brazil, seven years (1998–2004) of data obtained from July through November were analysed. During one-hour scans, observers determined group composition within 9.3 km around a land-based station. A total of 930 scans, comprising 4288 groups were analysed. Seven group categories were identified and their frequencies were 14.6% of 1AD (lone whale), 25.2% of DYAD (two adult whales), 7.3% of TRIO (three adult whales), 5.2 of TRIO+ (more than three adults), 24.9% of MOC (mother and calf), 19.6% of MOCE (mother, calf and one escort), and 3.1% of MOCE+ (mother, calf and more than one escort). Proportions of whale-group categories did not change between morning and afternoon, nor among years. However, as the season progressed, groups with calves increased while groups without calves decreased. This progression may be explained by the segregated migration patterns of humpback whales and also by changes in the social status of individuals. The Abrolhos Reef provides protection from the prevailing winds, which may explain the higher proportion of groups with calves in the area.

Cytogenetic determination of sex among individually identified humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae)

1988 ◽  
Vol 66 (6) ◽  
pp. 1243-1248 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard H. Lambertsen ◽  
C. Scott Baker ◽  
Deborah A. Duffield ◽  
Jan Chamberlin-Lea
Keyword(s):  
Population Biology ◽  
Marine Species ◽  
Megaptera Novaeangliae ◽  
Humpback Whales ◽  
Dermal Tissue ◽  
Behavioral Observations ◽  
The Social

Using a small biopsy dart, samples of living dermal tissue were collected from individually identified humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) in southeastern Alaskan waters. In vitro culture of these samples provided enough chromosomal material to karyotype 10 individuals. Examination of the sex chromosomes in the karyotypes demonstrated the sex of each of the 10 whales. In two cases, cytogenetic findings verified previous inferences of sex based on behavioral observations. In another two cases, karyotyping allowed the determination of sex when even long-term sighting histories and behavioral observations had been insufficient. For the rest of the whales, sex determination by cytogenetic findings has preceded long-term sightings and will facilitate the interpretation of future behavioral observations. We conclude that in vitro culturing of dermal tissue collected from naturally marked humpback whales, coupled with karyology, promises to be a powerful technique in future studies of the social behavior and population biology of this marine species.

scholarly journals The social vocalization repertoire of east Australian migrating humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae)

2007 ◽  
Vol 122 (5) ◽  
pp. 2893 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rebecca A. Dunlop ◽  
Michael J. Noad ◽  
Douglas H. Cato ◽  
Dale Stokes
Keyword(s):  
Megaptera Novaeangliae ◽  
Humpback Whales ◽  
The Social

Value-driven issues throughout the development of sociological theory

2020 ◽  
pp. 147-160
Author(s):  
Gulbarshyn Chepurko ◽  
Valerii Pylypenko
Keyword(s):  
Social Interactions ◽  
Social System ◽  
Sociological Theory ◽  
Social Scientists ◽  
Social Sphere ◽  
Technological Advances ◽  
The Social ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Different Levels

The paper examines and compares how the major sociological theories treat axiological issues. Value-driven topics are analysed in view of their relevance to society in times of crisis, when both societal life and the very structure of society undergo dramatic change. Nowadays, social scientists around the world are also witnessing such a change due to the emergence of alternative schools of sociological thought (non-classical, interpretive, postmodern, etc.) and, subsequently, the necessity to revise the paradigms that have been existed in sociology so far. Since the above-mentioned approaches are often used to address value-related issues, building a solid theoretical framework for these studies takes on considerable significance. Furthermore, the paradigm revision has been prompted by technological advances changing all areas of people’s lives, especially social interactions. The global human community, integral in nature, is being formed, and production of human values now matters more than production of things; hence the “expansion” of value-focused perspectives in contemporary sociology. The authors give special attention to collectivities which are higher-order units of the social system. These units are described as well-organised action systems where each individual performs his/her specific role. Just as the role of an individual is distinct from that of the collectivity (because the individual and the collectivity are different as units), so too a distinction is drawn between the value and the norm — because they represent different levels of social relationships. Values are the main connecting element between the society’s cultural system and the social sphere while norms, for the most part, belong to the social system. Values serve primarily to maintain the pattern according to which the society is functioning at a given time; norms are essential to social integration. Apart from being the means of regulating social processes and relationships, norms embody the “principles” that can be applied beyond a particular social system. The authors underline that it is important for Ukrainian sociology to keep abreast of the latest developments in the field of axiology and make good use of those ideas because this is a prerequisite for its successful integration into the global sociological community.

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