Development of sociality and emergence of independence in a killer whale (Orcinus orca) calf from birth to 36 months

Abstract

Dolphin calves spend most of their time swimming with their mother immediately after birth. As they mature, the calves become increasingly independent, and begin to interact more often with other calves, juveniles, and sub-adults. For bottlenose dolphin calves, sociality is related to maternal behaviors. Unfortunately, much less is known about the development of sociality and emergence of independence for killer whale calves. The purpose of this study was to examine the developmental changes in social behaviors and solitary activities of a killer whale calf across a 36-month period. Focal follow video recordings of a mother-calf pair housed at SeaWorld San Antonio were collected 2-6 times a day for 5-15 min at 6-month intervals. Using a sample of randomly selected video recordings at each month, developmental changes in swims and social interactions with her mother, swims and social interactions with non-maternal partners, and solitary activities (e.g., solitary swims, solitary play) were observed across the months. The calf spent most of her time swimming with the mother across the 36-month period. The time the calf socialized with her mother was greater than the time she socialized with others at each month. Besides her mother, the calf socialized more often with the other adult female compared to adult males. As the calf matured, the increase in the time she spent socializing with adult killer whales other than the mother corresponded with an increase in the rate and time spent in solitary play. The developmental trends of sociality and emerging independence replicate research conducted with calves of other dolphin species. Zoo Biol. 36:11-20, 2017. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Killer whale innovation: teaching animals to use their creativity upon request

“…In bottlenose dolphins, young individuals play more, engage in varied forms of play, and increase the difficulty with which they play, especially when more same-aged conspecifics are available (Kuczaj et al 2006 ). Although play has not specifically been studied in killer whales, an increase in play over the first three years of life was observed for a killer whale calf (Guarino et al 2017 ), much like other odontocetes in which play has been studied (Greene et al 2011 ; Hill and Ramirez 2014 ; Kuczaj et al 2006 ). Additionally, from an evolutionary ecological viewpoint, young female killer whales should produce more complex behaviors given what is known about their eventual role in killer whale society as potential matriarchs (Bigg et al 1990 ; Ford 2002 ).…”

Learning to play: A review and theoretical investigation of the developmental mechanisms and functions of cetacean play

“…Cetaceans may also self-strand during play (i.e., beaching), such that an animal beaches itself by boosting its body partially out of the water and onto a beach, sloped, or flat surface. Cetaceans in both their natural habitats and managed care have been observed engaging in intentional stranding play (Guarino, Hill, & Sigman, 2016;Guinet, 1991;Guinet & Bouvier, 1995;Hill, 2009;Hill & Ramirez, 2014;Paulos et al, 2010). Bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) in managed care have been observed to beach themselves on docks as early as 2 years 3 months of age, after observing their mothers perform the same behavior (Paulos et al, 2010), and belugas and killer whales in managed care spontaneously beach themselves as early as 3 months of age (Guarino et al, 2016;Hill, 2009;Hill & Ramirez, 2014).…”

“…Partner selectivity Constrained by availability, cetaceans may select partners with which they prefer to play. Over the first two months of life social play primarily occurs between mother and offspring (Guarino et al, 2016;Hill, 2009;Hill, Campbell, Dalton, & Osborn, 2013;Mann & Smuts, 1999). Partner selectivity for same age peers begins to develop as the frequency of play increases with young calves typically associating with one individual closest in age to themselves (Hill & Ramirez, 2014;Jones & Kuczaj, 2014;Mackey, Makecha, & Kuczaj, 2014).…”

Playful mouth‐to‐mouth interactions of belugas (Delphinapterus leucas) in managed care

“…Many species of Cetacea are very tactile (e.g., Dudzinski et al, 2010, 2012; Guarino et al, 2017; Jones & Swartz, 1984; Keener et al, 2018; Kraus & Hatch, 2001; Yeater, 2013). Observations of odontocetes in both managed care and the wild indicate that contact occurs relatively frequently between conspecifics during affiliative social interactions and often involves various forms of fin and body contact (Connor et al, 2006; Dudzinski, 1998; Dudzinski et al, 2009, 2010, 2012; Herman & Tavolga, 1980; Mann & Smuts, 1999).…”