PREVIEW

BY MARK WORGAN

Scientists have filmed sperm whales headbutting one another for the first time - validating scenes depicted in the 19th Century novel Moby-dick.

The research, led by the University of St Andrews, suggests the behaviour may have inspired dramatic historical reports of whales striking ships - including the real-life events behind Moby-Dick.

Using drone technology, researchers captured footage of the animals colliding head-first, along with the surrounding social interactions. The recordings were made during fieldwork in the Azores and the Balearic Islands between 2020 and 2022.

The findings, published on 23 March in the journal Marine Mammal Science, indicate that the behaviour is primarily seen among younger, sub-adult whales - rather than between large males, as previously thought.

This raises new questions about its purpose, including whether it plays a role in social bonding or competition.

Lead author Alec Burlem, who conducted the research while at the University of St Andrews in collaboration with scientists from the University of the Azores and Asociación Tursiops, said: “It was really exciting to observe this behaviour, which we knew had been hypothesised for such a long time, but not yet documented and described systematically.”

Researchers say further observations will be needed to understand the function of the behaviour, but advances in drone use are opening up new possibilities for studying marine life.

There has been speculation that headbutting may stem from physical contests between whales. Some scientists have suggested it could form part of male-to-male competition occurring beneath the surface, making it difficult to observe from boats.

Others have argued that repeatedly using the head as a weapon would be unlikely to evolve, as it could damage structures essential for echolocation and communication.

Reports of sperm whales using their heads to strike objects date back to the era of open-boat whaling in the 19th Century.

One of the most famous incidents involved the whaleship Essex, which was sunk in 1820 near the Galápagos Islands after being struck by a large sperm whale - an event that later inspired Herman Melville’s novel Moby-Dick.

First mate Owen Chase described the encounter in a contemporary account.

"I turned around and saw him about one hundred rods (approx. 500 m) directly ahead of us, coming down with twice his ordinary speed of around 24 knots, and it appeared with tenfold fury and vengeance in his aspect,” he wrote. “The surf flew in all directions about him with the continual violent thrashing of his tail. His head about half out of the water, and in that way he came upon us, and again struck the ship."

Other 19th Century vessels, including the Ann Alexander and Kathleen, were also reportedly sunk in similar incidents.

Dr Burlem, now based at the University of Hawaiʻi, said drone technology was transforming research into the whales and may demystify more unusual behaviour recorded by seafarers.
“This unique overhead perspective for observing and documenting near-surface behaviour is just one of the ways drone technology is transforming the study of wildlife biology,” he added. “It’s exciting to think about what as-yet unseen behaviours we may soon uncover, as well how more headbutting observations may help us to shed light on the functions the behaviour may serve. If there are people out there with similar footage, we would be very keen to hear from them.”