Spring is in the air, and we all know what that means...
...it's time for animals to get it on.
Reproduction is the cornerstone of evolution for every species on Earth, and for the vast majority of us, it takes two to tango.
Every summer, humpback whales feed in polar waters, and in the autumn and winter, they migrate to warmer tropical waters to breed.
Since the 1970s, scientists have been studying humpback whales during the autumn and winter months, observing their complex social behaviours, including playing, courtship, and reproduction. But humpback whale sex has remained an enigma, with no confirmed record of mating between the sexes ever having been made.
There are two reasons for this: first, for the protection of whales, humans should not actively approach humpback whales within 100 meters; and second, among cetaceans, the male's penis is usually hidden within the genital slit, which helps maintain the streamlined body shape of the whale.
Males only expose their penises outside the body during sexual intercourse, which usually happens underwater and is difficult to observe.
Humpback Whale Genitalia
Diagram of Humpback Whale Genitalia
In a recent article published in the journal Marine Mammal Science, humpback whales were filmed engaging in sexual behavior for the first time ever.
Humpback Whale Sex Caught on Film
In January 2022, photographers Lyle Krannichfeld and Brandi Romano were on a boat off the coast of the Hawaiian Islands when they encountered two humpback whales. As the boat idled, the whales slowly swam toward it, prompting the photographers to put their cameras in the water to capture the whales' beauty.
However, as they filmed, the photographers noticed something unusual. The whales, which had been swimming side by side, suddenly began engaging in a "mounting" behavior.
Figure 3. Credit: Lyle Krannichfeld and Brandi Romano.
They watched as humpback B came up "behind humpback whale A," grabbed it with a pectoral fin, and "went ventral to ventral," as the photographer described it, meaning belly to belly. As the images show, the whale on bottom exposes a black genital-like shape. The photographers realized at that point that they might be witnessing whales mating.
To confirm that this was humpback whale sexual behavior, the two photographers contacted Stephanie Stack, a research associate for the Pacific Whale Foundation, and described what they had seen.
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Image source: Lyle Krannichfeld and Brandi Romano
According to the descriptions and photographs provided by the two photographers, Stephanie provided both a "piece of good news" and a "piece of bad news."
The good news is:
This is indeed sexual behavior between humpback whales,
The bad news is:
Both of these are males.
How does she know that they are both male? It's actually quite simple. The tail fluke of each humpback whale is like the fingerprint of a human, unique to each individual. By observing the tail flukes and comparing them to data from a whale catalogue, basic information about each whale was obtained.
Figure 5 The tail fin of the humpback whales Image source: George Ofei
By comparing, Stephanie confirmed that the two humpback whales exposed this time were both males, and the age difference between them was 13 years.
Since they are both male humpback whales, the question is: what does this behavior of theirs represent?
Homosexual attraction or the survival of the fittest?
When we see males with males, it is hard not to think of homosexual behavior.
In fact, homosexual behavior is not uncommon in the animal kingdom. The behavior of bonobos, flamingos, dragonflies, and bison on land has been recorded, and many cetaceans in the ocean also have homosexual behavior, such as bottlenose dolphins, killer whales. , gray whale, bowhead whale, etc.
Figure 6: Male Humpback Whales Credit: NOAA
In the ocean, there are many reasons for homosexual behavior, such as establishing social bonds, relieving stress, and practicing mating. The researchers speculate that the behavior between these two male humpback whales may have been a way to release pent-up energy.
During the breeding season, male humpback whales tend to have higher hormone levels. If there are no females around, they will instinctively seek other objects to release their energy.
Image 7 Source: Study Appendix
Alternatively, there is another possibility. There could be competition between male humpback whales during breeding for access to females.
During such competitive interactions, humpbacks sometimes display an S posture – a signal of perceived threat or stress – characterized by a dropped fluke and slightly raised head, resulting in an overall body shape reminiscent of the letter S.
In Image 8, the humpback whale on the bottom has arched its body into an S-shape. Source: Study infographic
The photo also shows how the humpback whale labeled as B seems to be asserting its dominance, while the other humpback labeled as A has its body twisted into an S shape. What's more, the humpback on the bottom, labeled A, is also sick.
It's noticeably thinner than the humpback on top of it, labeled as B, and it has a large open wound on its jaw, likely from a ship strike, that's contributing to its poor health.
It's also covered in whale lice (Cyamus boopis), a type of parasite that lives on the skin of whales and multiplies rapidly when its host is sick or injured.
Orca A: Battle-scarred jaw, duller coloration Photo Credit: Study Supplement
As the old adage goes: "When the going gets tough, the tough get going." In the face of Orca A's injuries and apparent illness, another male orca (Orca B) asserted his dominance through displacement behavior, communicating to the female that he was not only stronger but also healthier, thereby improving his chances.
Although this encounter did not culminate in observable mating, the documentation provides researchers with novel insights into courtship and potential mating positions.
And who knows, with the proliferation of mobile phone cameras, you or I might just capture footage of a bull orca actually mating with a female.
