US EditionScientists Captured Female Sperm Whales on Video Working Together During a Birth to Protect the Calf
Female sperm whales from two family lines cooperated for over 30 minutes to support a newborn calf, revealing rare social behaviors and vocal communication, researchers reported.
- On July 8, 2023, researchers with the non-profit Project CETI captured the first-ever video of a sperm whale birth off the coast of Dominica, documenting the rare event in unprecedented detail.
- Eleven whales, mostly female, united to support the labor and lift the newborn calf to the surface, demonstrating complex cooperative care known as allocare among related and unrelated group members.
- Using aerial drones and machine learning, scientists analyzed the 34-minute delivery, during which a core group of four whales including mother Rounder provided constant support keeping the negatively buoyant calf afloat.
- Vocalizations known as codas shifted during key birth moments, as researchers suggest these structured click sequences help maintain social bonding and group cohesion during significant events.
- These findings offer rare quantitative evidence of direct support for non-biologically related offspring, potentially explaining how transient cooperation during birth sustains the complex sociality observed in sperm whale societies.
47 Articles
47 Articles
Conservation news
ecotopical.comFamily and friends help sperm whale mother and newborn during birth
With the notable exception of humans, most mammals give birth alone. But in July 2023, researchers in the Caribbean witnessed something extraordinary: sperm whales not only attending a birth but actively helping both mother and newborn. Some of the whales present were not even related to the mother, known as Rounder. “Kinship barriers dissolved,” notes […]
In July 2023, off the coast of Dominica, a team of researchers from the CETI Project (Cetacean Translation Initiative) carried out an unprecedented observation. They documented with drones, underwater audio and photographs from a ship the birth of a sperm whale. In addition to showing in unprecedented detail an exciting birth, the video reveals a behavior rarely seen in animals that are not primates: eleven cetaceans from two normally separated …
A research team has documented the birth of a sperm whale calf for the first time. The footage shows that other whales assisted the mother and calf – a rare example of midwifery in the animal kingdom. By Veronika Simon.
Drone videos and sound recordings show how a sperm whale gives birth to a calf in the eastern Caribbean. An entire group of whales surrounds the mother and supports the newborn in the first breaths.
Coverage Details
Bias Distribution
- 53% of the sources are Center
Factuality
To view factuality data please Upgrade to Premium
