Orcas may be able to make and use tools, with a little kelp from their friends
The researchers think the behavior is common among southern resident orcas, a population that frequents waters off Washington state. The behavior seems to be more frequent in whales that are genetically related and could help them with hygiene, but also to bond as a social group, which is common in other mammal species.
'It matches well with grooming in other species of animals like apes and ungulates,' Weiss said. 'They'll groom and preen each other as a primary way of maintaining special relationships.'
Deborah Giles, the science and research director of the nonprofit conservation group Wild Orca, said she was not surprised that the animals are capable of such a complex task.
'They're incredibly smart animals. The morphology of their brain shows us their capacity for social learning, language, and memory and emotion,' she said. 'This is another cultural thing they engage in. They learned it from family members and it probably serves multiple purposes — skin sloughing and solidifying social bonds.'
Southern resident killer whales are a critically endangered population protected under the Marine Mammal Protection Act. Their current population is about 73. The animals are social and live in close-knit family groups led by mothers and grandmothers.
The whales are given tracking numbers by the Center for Whale Research and are closely observed by researchers, photographers and whale watchers — particularly when they're near communities along Puget Sound, like Seattle.
'I would venture to say it's the most well-studied population of whales on the planet regardless of species, because it's been going on for 50 years,' Giles said.
How, then, did this stunning behavior escape researchers' notice for decades?
They didn't have the right perspective.
'It's a really cryptic behavior. It's happening almost entirely underwater and it's a piece of kelp wedged between two animals that's only about 2 feet long,' Weiss said.
More recently, researchers have started using drones to document the whales from an aerial perspective. As drone technology has improved, so has the data they've collected.
'What's really changed for us in the 2024 field season — we got a new drone,' Weiss said, noting that it provided higher-resolution video.
He said the researchers first noticed a whale pushing kelp against another whale in April and then observed whales rubbing against each other for about 15 minutes.
Once the researchers noticed the strange behavior, they began to see it more often.
'We started seeing it a lot — to the point now where most days we fly the drone, we do see at least one pair of whales doing this behavior,' Weiss said.
The researchers suspect the behavior has been happening all along.
'We didn't have the right vantage. I do believe this is something that's probably been happening since time immemorial,' Giles said. 'I think we've just scratched the surface of understanding these animals, partly because of technology.'
The southern residents have been in the spotlight of conservation efforts for decades. The whales are facing a number of threats, including declining quantity and quality of prey, toxic pollution and disturbance from vessel noise, according to the Marine Mammal Commission. Some research suggests the southern residents are on a path toward extinction, if more aggressive measures aren't taken.
Weiss said the new findings offer yet another reason why it's important to take care of the species.
'Discovering something like this, late in the game for how long we've studied them, says there's a lot more to learn and they need to be around to learn those things,' he said. 'This is not just a collection of 73 whales … It's a unique culture and also a society. These are whales with a set of traditions that go back thousands of years.'
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BBC News
23-06-2025
- BBC News
Killer whales 'massage' each other using kelp
Orcas in the North Pacific have been seen "massaging" each other - rubbing pieces of kelp between their bodies. Using drones, researchers filmed the animals selecting and biting off the kelp, then placing the tube-shaped piece of seaweed onto the back of another whale. The scientists think the massages might have a health or hygiene function, but they also believe they are a form of social bonding. The findings, published in the journal Current Biology, appear to be an example of tool use in killer whales - with the animals fashioning a tubular piece of seaweed and using it for a specific, planned purpose. "Let's call it a kelp massage," explained Prof Darren Croft from the University of Exeter and the Center for Whale Research in Washington State. "They're using the kelp to rub between themselves."During 12 days - between April and July 2024 - of studying a population of orcas known as the Southern Residents in the coastal waters off Washington State, the team recorded 30 bouts of kelp massage. "We see it multiple times per day," lead researcher, Dr Michael Weiss from the CWR, told BBC News. "When we get a drone over these animals, we're going to see at least one pair of whales doing this."This could be a marine version of what is known as allogrooming in primates. Many monkeys and apes groom other members of their groups - spending hours picking through fur, cleaning and removing parasites. The researchers have dubbed this behaviour as "allokelping". Physical touch in animals, Prof Croft explained, "is really important for building and maintaining social relationships."And these killer whales are incredibly social animals," he added. The scientists have been using drones for almost a decade to study these marine aerial view has given them new insight into underwater behaviour - including how and with whom the animals socialise. "What's incredible with this discovery is that - with high quality video - we could see that a lot of this physical contact [between these large whales] is happening with the aid of this relatively small piece of kelp." There was some indication that whales with "more peely skin" were more likely to engage in the massages. "That's pointing towards the idea that they're 'scratching an itch' - that it has a function in skin health," said Prof Croft. BBC Inside Science: Can science save our oceans? Orca mothers keep 5-tonne sons out of troubleSecrets of climate change hidden in whales' huge bodies It is not clear whether this type of grooming behavior is unique to the Southern Residents or if it is more widespread among other whale populations - and even other species. But Dr Weiss said that the discovery - that whales were manufacturing tools, "and that these objects were being used in a way never before reported in marine mammals, was incredibly exciting". The study of this threatened killer whale population, which lives in the coastal waters between Vancouver and Seattle, was started by Dr Ken Balcomb more than 50 years ago. Initially, he wanted to examine the threats to their survival, particularly as the population was targeted for capture and sale to some marine well as garnering the southern resident killer whales official protected status, the ensuing years of work and observations went on to reveal insights into killer whale life that could only have come to light through decades of study. The studies have revealed, for example, the vital role of killer whale grandmothers and how much the females sacrifice to support their Weiss said the new finding highlighted "yet another way these whales' society and culture is unique and the importance of recovering the southern resident killer whale population".
NBC News
23-06-2025
- NBC News
Orcas may be able to make and use tools, with a little kelp from their friends
It's the first time whales have been documented making and modifying tools, though humpback whales have been seen making air bubbles to trap krill and fish during hunts. The researchers think the behavior is common among southern resident orcas, a population that frequents waters off Washington state. The behavior seems to be more frequent in whales that are genetically related and could help them with hygiene, but also to bond as a social group, which is common in other mammal species. 'It matches well with grooming in other species of animals like apes and ungulates,' Weiss said. 'They'll groom and preen each other as a primary way of maintaining special relationships.' Deborah Giles, the science and research director of the nonprofit conservation group Wild Orca, said she was not surprised that the animals are capable of such a complex task. 'They're incredibly smart animals. The morphology of their brain shows us their capacity for social learning, language, and memory and emotion,' she said. 'This is another cultural thing they engage in. They learned it from family members and it probably serves multiple purposes — skin sloughing and solidifying social bonds.' Southern resident killer whales are a critically endangered population protected under the Marine Mammal Protection Act. Their current population is about 73. The animals are social and live in close-knit family groups led by mothers and grandmothers. The whales are given tracking numbers by the Center for Whale Research and are closely observed by researchers, photographers and whale watchers — particularly when they're near communities along Puget Sound, like Seattle. 'I would venture to say it's the most well-studied population of whales on the planet regardless of species, because it's been going on for 50 years,' Giles said. How, then, did this stunning behavior escape researchers' notice for decades? They didn't have the right perspective. 'It's a really cryptic behavior. It's happening almost entirely underwater and it's a piece of kelp wedged between two animals that's only about 2 feet long,' Weiss said. More recently, researchers have started using drones to document the whales from an aerial perspective. As drone technology has improved, so has the data they've collected. 'What's really changed for us in the 2024 field season — we got a new drone,' Weiss said, noting that it provided higher-resolution video. He said the researchers first noticed a whale pushing kelp against another whale in April and then observed whales rubbing against each other for about 15 minutes. Once the researchers noticed the strange behavior, they began to see it more often. 'We started seeing it a lot — to the point now where most days we fly the drone, we do see at least one pair of whales doing this behavior,' Weiss said. The researchers suspect the behavior has been happening all along. 'We didn't have the right vantage. I do believe this is something that's probably been happening since time immemorial,' Giles said. 'I think we've just scratched the surface of understanding these animals, partly because of technology.' The southern residents have been in the spotlight of conservation efforts for decades. The whales are facing a number of threats, including declining quantity and quality of prey, toxic pollution and disturbance from vessel noise, according to the Marine Mammal Commission. Some research suggests the southern residents are on a path toward extinction, if more aggressive measures aren't taken. Weiss said the new findings offer yet another reason why it's important to take care of the species. 'Discovering something like this, late in the game for how long we've studied them, says there's a lot more to learn and they need to be around to learn those things,' he said. 'This is not just a collection of 73 whales … It's a unique culture and also a society. These are whales with a set of traditions that go back thousands of years.'
The Guardian
23-06-2025
- The Guardian
Killer whales seen grooming each other with kelp in first for marine tool use
Killer whales have been observed mutually grooming each other with a type of seaweed, the first known instance of a marine animal using tools in a way that was previously thought to be the preserve of primates such as humans. A group of killer whales, which are also known as orcas, have been biting off short sections of bull kelp and then rolling these stems between their bodies, possibly to remove dead skin or parasites. The behavior is the first such documented mutual grooming in marine animals and is outlined in a new scientific paper. The discovery was made in a contained group of 73 killer whales that live in the southern part of the Salish Sea, a section of the Pacific Ocean hugging the coast of Washington state in the US and Canada's British Columbia. Researchers were surprised to see a whale remove a 2ft section of bull kelp, balance it on its nose and then approach another whale to wedge the kelp between their bodies and rub it between them. At first, the scientists thought this was a quirky one-off but then noticed this was a widespread behavior within the group, according to the paper, published in journal Current Biology. 'We started keeping an eye out for the behavior and realized this was a common, frequent behavior, which was a very exciting moment,' said Michael Weiss, research director at the Center for Whale Research and the study's lead author. 'We realized we had stumbled across a newly described behavior, which is remarkable. You don't even think it is a possibility to find something new like this when you're observing whales.' Cetaceans such as whales have been previously seen with kelp draped over their bodies, a practice known as 'kelping'. The behavior witnessed for the first time last year and published in the new study, however, differs because the kelp is selected, trimmed and manipulated between two whales working together. The 'allokelping' occurred between all whales within the pod, but particularly between those closely related, of a similar age and involving those with lots of dead skin. This has led researchers to posit that the grooming practice is done to remove dead skin, help the whales stay free of parasites and foster the sort of social bonds that a select group of other animals, such as humans, get from interacting in this way. 'In primates, including humans, touch moderates stress and helps to build relationships,' said Darren Croft, a researcher at the University of Exeter and executive director of the Center for Whale Research. 'We know killer whales often make contact with other members of their group, touching with their bodies and fins, but using kelp like this might enhance this experience. 'It might also be important for skin health. Whales and dolphins have a variety of strategies to help them slough dead skin, and this may be yet another adaptation for this purpose.' Killer whales, despite their name, are the largest members of the dolphin family and can reach up to 33ft (10 metres) long and weigh as much as 22,000 pounds (10,000kg). Known to be an intelligent apex predator found in all of the world's oceans, killer whales have been seen working cooperatively when hunting but until now it wasn't known that they use tools in this way. The deployment of tools is seen elsewhere in the animal world, most famously with chimpanzees using sticks to retrieve termites from a mound. Elephants, tamarins and crows have also been seen using tools in some way, although few creatures, other than humans, are known to use tools in the sort of mutually beneficial way documented in the Salish Sea killer whales. 'It doesn't surprise me that they have these intricate social interactions because we know they develop deep bonds between each other, that they are very smart and they figure out problems in their environment,' said Weiss. A more surprising aspect of the discovery, Weiss said, was how long it took. The Salish Sea killer whales have been studied for the past 50 years, with the kelp usage only spotted last year. 'These are probably the most monitored marine mammals in the world,' said Weiss. 'It really shows that these whales have so much to teach us and that we are still just scratching the surface of their lives and behavior. There is probably a lot of other such behavior we are just waiting to stumble upon, in this and other marine species.' A breakthrough in better understanding the whales' lives came through the use of cameras on drones, which allowed researchers to observe them more closely. By flying and zooming in on the pod as it swam together, researchers could make out the short strands of kelp and how they were being pressed up and moved between the whales. The study's discoveries were 'amazing' and raised the question of other instances of cetacean tool use, said Monika Wieland Shields, director of the Orca Behavior Institute, who was not involved in the research. 'Thus far, there is still a pretty small sample size of allokelping, but if, as the authors suggest, this behavior relates to social skin care, it's probably been ubiquitous for some time,' she said. 'This research demonstrates the new behavioral, cultural and social insights that can come from relatively new techniques like drone observation.' Distinct groups of whales have been known to share certain traits, such as their songs containing regional 'accents' in different parts of the ocean around the world. Researchers said they were keen to find out if kelp grooming practices are unique to this group of killer whales or are found elsewhere, too. Even though this grooming practice has only just been discovered, it is under threat. The group of 73 whales do not interbreed with other killer whale populations and Weiss said the outlook was 'very bleak' as the group slowly declines. The whales feed primarily on chinook, or 'king', salmon which have suffered steep population drops due to overfishing, the climate crisis and the destruction of spawning habitat by dams built on rivers. The bull kelp itself, meanwhile, is menaced by global heating, which is causing oceans around the world to rapidly warm up. The kelp thrives in colder water and whole swaths of the algae are being wiped out in the Pacific north-west as conditions become increasingly hot. 'The killer whales are in danger and we are at risk of losing this unique behavior, too,' said Weiss. 'If we lose them we may never see this behavior on the planet again. We don't just lose 73 whales; we lose everything they have been doing for thousands and thousands of years.'
