Two male humpback whales have been filmed having sex in Hawaii, with experts calling the encounter a “scientific breakthrough” for a species whose sexual behavior remains largely a mystery.
There are still things scientists don’t know about humpback whales, especially when it comes to the species’ sex life.
It’s an area that remains “largely uncharted” by scientists who have spent decades studying the social behavior of humpback whales, according to a study published in the journal Marine Mammal Science.
These photos are not only the first report of sexual activity between two male humpback whales, but also the first time sexual activity of any kind has been documented among the species, the study said.
“This discovery challenges our preconceived notions about humpback whale behavior,” Stephanie Stack, a whale researcher at the Pacific Whale Foundation, said in a news release.
“Although we have long been aware of the complex social structures of these amazing creatures, to witness two male whales mating for the first time is a unique and remarkable event,” Stack said.
Two male humpback whales were found mating
The whales were captured on January 19, 2022 by Maui-based photographers Lyle Kranichfeld and Brandi Romano. The photos were published in the February report.
The photographers, aboard a private boat, encountered the two whales just over a mile west of Molokini Crater, off the island of Maui, Hawaii.
The whales approached the boat slowly, appearing on the surface and just below the surface, one after the other.
Photographers noticed an “unusual brown coloration” on one whale’s body, indicating poor health. The two whales circled the boat several times, interacting with each other, the report said.
The whale with the skin disease showed “slow and low-energy movements,” which was likely caused by whale lice and exhaustion.
The brown whale was doing its best to swim away from the other whale, circling the boat in an attempt to block or seek refuge.
The other whale caught up to him, engaging in copulation briefly before diving below the surface.
The discolored whale remained close to the surface for a few more moments, returning to the depths of the ocean as soon as the other whale was out of sight.
Why researchers are intrigued by the encounter
Humpback whales typically engage in copulation to reproduce, migrating from polar to tropical waters to do so, the study said.
According to the study, it is not necessarily unusual for a species to engage in non-reproductive sexual behavior or for species of the same sex to copulate.
What makes this situation unique is that one of the male humpback whales involved was unhealthy, “raising intriguing questions about the nature of such behavior in humpback whales,” according to the study.
What adds another layer of complexity, Stack writes, is the fact that the only other documented case of a humpback whale engaging in copulation occurred in 1998, when a fellow researcher observed a humpback whale having sex with another whale that he just died.
“The limited data available on this behavior underscores the need for further research to explore the motives, consequences, and potential factors influencing such interactions, particularly in the context of healthy individuals,” Stack wrote.
It is currently unknown whether two healthy male humpback whales will mate, but the event opens up “new avenues for studying the wider range of cetacean behaviour, social structures and factors influencing their reproductive strategies”, the report said.
