New paper! Dialect variation in Mediterranean sperm whales shows evidence of cultural evolution in an isolated population tinyurl.com/yrfepekh with @taylorhersh.bsky.social @asociaciontursiops.bsky.social and the Pelagos Cetacean Research Institute 🐋🦑🧪 @seamammalresearch.bsky.social

Paper out of the oven! 🥖 We (David Gaspard, @cmk-clarke.bsky.social, and Hal Whitehead @whiteheadlab.bsky.social) used drone photogrammetry to infer sperm whale age and sex based on sperm whales' massive sexual dimorphism 📏🐳🚁 www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Inferring sperm whale (Physeter macrocephalus) sex and developmental stage using aerial photogrammetry - Scientific Reports

Demographic data (i.e. sex and age) are fundamental for analyzing behaviour patterns and evaluating the reproductive potential of a population. However, determining these traits in the wild can be cha...

nature.com

New paper - one for the headbangers! 🐳 🦑 🧪

Alecburslem@alecburslem.bsky.social · 6mo ago

New publication! 'Headbutting Behavior Between Sperm Whales Documented Using Unoccupied Aerial Vehicles' Out in @marinemammalogy.bsky.social in collaboration with @lrendell.bsky.social, @azwhlab.bsky.social and @asociaciontursiops.bsky.social. doi.org/10.1111/mms....

Next up for our lab member introduction is Madison Sliwa! www.linkedin.com/in/madison-s... Madi is a fifth-year undergraduate honours student completing her degree in Marine Biology. Madi is studying sperm whales in the Galápagos Islands.

Our next lab member introduction is Katija Newton!! Katja is a fourth year undergraduate student majoring in Marine Biology. As a co-op student last semester, Katija identified and catalogued 2025 field photos for the northern bottlenose whale project. www.linkedin.com/in/katija-ne...

Next up for lab member introductions is: Charlotte Powell www.linkedin.com/in/charlotte... Charlotte is a fifth year undergraduate student studying Marine Biology and Ocean Sciences.Last semester, she completed an Independent Study with the Whitehead Lab.

New paper on the social learning of bubble net feeding by humpbacks in British Columbia, published in Proceedings of the Royal Society B 🐋 royalsocietypublishing.org/rspb/article... #marmam @bcwhales.bsky.social @seamammalresearch.bsky.social @lrendell.bsky.social @uniofstandrews.bsky.social [1/5]

The diffusion of cooperative and solo bubble net feeding in Canadian Pacific humpback whales

Abstract. Animal culture, information and behaviours acquired and shared by social learning are a form of biodiversity with intrinsic and practical value.

royalsocietypublishing.org

Next up for our lab member introductions is: David Gaspard www.linkedin.com/in/david-gas... David is a M.Sc. student in the Whitehead Lab using drone imagery to measure northern bottlenose whales' body condition in the Scotian Shelf, offshore Newfoundland, and the Arctic.

Congratulations to Christine @cmk-clarke.bsky.social on completing her ATC exam!🎉 Christine is a PhD candidate researching the mysterious movement and behaviour of male sperm whales, in collaboration with researchers around the globe.

Incredible new study led by Sam Hill-Cousins on motor synchrony in the Shark Bay dolphins! Honored to have been a part of this amazing team 🐬🐬🐬 Check it out below: 👇👇👇👇👇

Stephanie L King@stephanielking.bsky.social · 10mo ago

New paper on dolphin motor synchrony led by master's student Sam Hill-Cousins with a fantastic team of co-authors @danaipapageorgiou.bsky.social @emmachereskin.bsky.social @researchdolphin.bsky.social 🐬🐬🐬: Male dolphins use synchrony to both maintain and strengthen their social bonds rdcu.be/eQ543

Occasional reminder that if you're interested in the history and practice of scientific writing, and folks who give advice about scientific writing, I made a starter pack: go.bsky.app/TwZVnjU

A lot of cuddling whales, dolphins, and seals 🦭🐳🤗 Very excited to share our review on how touch mediates social relationships in marine mammals with the amazing Sam Walmsley, LJ Feyrer @deepdivewhales.bsky.social, Elizabeth Zwamborn, and Hal Whitehead www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

The role of touch in marine mammal society: a review and future directions

While social living has many advantages, it also has significant challenges associated with differences in individual needs and abilities. Individuals…

sciencedirect.com

🐳 New Marine Mammal Paper🐬 *Three decades of observer records reveal ongoing risks of marine mammal depredation and entanglement in Canada’s Atlantic fisheries* academic.oup.com/icesjms/arti...

Three decades of observer records reveal ongoing risks of marine mammal depredation and entanglement in Canada’s Atlantic fisheries

Abstract. Marine mammals adapt foraging strategies in response to human activities and environmental change, often resulting in conflicts with fisheries. W

academic.oup.com

Super happy to share our new preprint on inferring Galapagos sperm whale sex and age-class using drone photogrammetry 🐳 📏 along with the wonderful @cmk-clarke.bsky.social, David Gaspard, and Hal Whitehead www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

Inferring sperm whale (Physeter macrocephalus) sex and developmental stage using aerial photogrammetry

Demographic data (i.e. sex and age) are fundamental for analyzing behaviour patterns and evaluating the reproductive potential of a population. However, determining these traits in the wild can be cha...

biorxiv.org

Just woke up from a social media pause and the first thing I see is an incredible footage of a sperm whale casually cruising with a giant squid in its mouth ?? 🦑 🌊 🌿

*check OUT, not our. Blergh. But while you're at the booth, you *could* also ask about OUR new book too ("our" in this case being me and @bgmerkle.bsky.social) I bet Jeremy won't mind if you preorder his and ours at the same time! press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/bo...

Teaching and Mentoring Writers in the Sciences

Blending deep experience, evidence-based advice, and good humor, this is an invaluable resource for everyone involved in developing good scientific writers.   Every scientist eventually teaches scient...

press.uchicago.edu

I've started a marine mammal reseachers starter pack. It focuses on researchers and labs studying marine mammals. Feel free to ask to be added :) go.bsky.app/MWiR9uS

Comparto con mucha emoción nuestro artículo de libre acceso sobre los retos y oportunidades para incorporar la dimensión cultural a la conservación de los cachalotes del Océano Pacífico Este Tropical 🐳🌎! @lrendell.bsky.social @migratoryspecies.bsky.social doi.org/10.1098/rstb...

Integrating cultural dimensions in sperm whale (Physeter macrocephalus) conservation: threats, challenges and solutions | Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences

Culture—socially transmitted behaviours shared within a community—can influence animal populations' structure, vulnerability and resilience. Clans of sperm whales in the Eastern Tropical Pacific (ETP)...

doi.org