Associate Professor Rebecca Dunlop of The University of Queensland's School of Biological Sciences led a study that examined nearly two decades of data on humpback whale behavior and discovered that singing may be out of favor when it comes to seduction.
According to Dr. Dunlop, a singing male whale was nearly twice as likely as a non-singing male to be seen attempting to breed with a female in 1997.
Whales give up singing to fight for love
(Photo : JOAQUIN SARMIENTO/AFP via Getty Images)
By 2015, however, the situation had flipped, with non-singing males nearly five times more likely to be recorded attempting to breed than singing males, as per ScienceDaily.
It's a significant behavior change, so humans aren't the only ones experiencing significant social changes when it comes to mating rituals.
The researchers believe the shift occurred gradually as populations recovered following the widespread cessation of whaling in the 1960s.
"If competition is fierce, the last thing a male wants to do is advertise the presence of a female in the area, because it may attract other males who will out-compete the singer for the female," Dr. Dunlop explained.
Males who switch to non-singing behavior may be less likely to attract competition and more likely to retain females.
If other males discover them, they either compete or flee.
Physical aggression in humpbacks typically manifests as ramming, charging, and attempting to head slap each other.
Because there is a risk of physical injury, males must weigh the costs and benefits of each tactic.
According to Dr. Dunlop, singing was the dominant mating tactic in 1997, but that has changed in the last seven years.
It will be fascinating to see how whale mating behavior evolves in the future.
Co-author Associate Professor Celine Frere stated that previous research by UQ's Professor Michael Noad found that the whale population increased from 3,700 to 27,000 between 1997 and 2015.
According to Dr. Frere, we used this rich dataset, collected off Queensland's Peregian Beach, to investigate how this significant change in whale social dynamics could lead to changes in mating behavior.
Also Read: Why Whale Stress Significantly Dropped After 9/11
How do humpback whales mate and reproduce?
During the breeding and birthing seasons, humpback whales migrate 5,000 miles or more, as per AZ Animals.
For example, the northern Pacific humpback spends its summers in the waters of Northern California, Northern Japan, and the Bering Sea.
During mating season, they will travel to four different breeding grounds: Hawaii, the Japanese Islands, Mexico, and Central America.
They travel in pods, some in small groups of two or three, others in larger groups, and some on their own.
Every year between December and May, a group of 5,000 or more humpback whales gathers off the coast of Hawaii to form competition pods for mating.
When whales reach the breeding grounds, they form competition pods. Typically, one female whale is paired with a primary escort (male), and a group of males will fight for the right to overthrow the escort and earn mating rights.
A competition pod can consist of a few whales or a larger group of 12-15 whales.
To attract the female's attention, the whales will bump heads, slap tails, and splash their fins.
The female may also take off on a high-speed chase, and the males will pursue her.
Some whales may abandon the competition pod, while others may join to see if they have what it takes.
Finally, one male wins the right to mate, and the female and male can dive down and back up together.
Whales fertilize internally, which means that the male will deposit his sperm in the female, fertilizing one egg.
The females will carry the singleton baby for nearly a year, with a gestation period of 11 months.
Males and females do not form tight bonds after mating, and whales are not monogamous.
Related article: Bats and Whales Share Behavioral Similarities
© 2024 NatureWorldNews.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
