Many members of the animal kingdom, from birds to elephants, have been known to make and use tools. Now we can add another unexpected animal to the list – killer whales.
A team of whale experts has observed a group of endangered killer whales manufacturing and using a tool made out of kelp. Their findings, published in Current Biology, are the first ever documented use of tools by marine mammals.
“We found that southern resident killer whales regularly use lengths of bull kelp during social interactions, apparently as a tool to groom one another,” said Michael Weiss, from the Center for Whale Research, in a press release. “To find that the whales were not just using but also manufacturing tools, and that these objects were being used in a way never before reported in marine mammals, was incredibly exciting.”
How Do Whales Make And Use Tools?
Bull kelp is the material of choice for this population of resident killer whales. The whales break off the ends of bull kelp stalks and use them to groom each other. The grooming process involves one whale pressing the kelp ends against another whale and then rolling the stalks between them, often for a significant amount of time.
Although researchers observed this grooming behavior in all kinds of whales within this population — regardless of age, sex, and social relationship — one type of whale seemed to get groomed the most.
Killer whales who suffered from the more extreme cases of dead skin and molting engaged in the grooming activity frequently. This behavior suggests that the grooming ritual may be linked to improving whale hygiene.
This population of whales has been under observation by scientists for decades, yet the grooming behavior was only recently captured thanks to technological advancements in aerial observation.
“What I find most remarkable is that, despite this apparently being a common behavior — we see it most days we fly our drone over these whales — it hadn’t yet been discovered in this population despite nearly 50 years of dedicated observation. To me, this demonstrates not just the power of new observation methods but also how much we still have to learn about these animals,” said Weiss in the press release.
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A Unique And Endangered Whale Population
The talented group of whales is part of a population that lives in the Salish Sea, located between British Columbia and Washington. Known as the southern resident killer whales, these whales are critically endangered, with approximately 80 remaining across the Pacific Northwest.
Their ability to make tools is just another unique aspect of this killer whale population, who are known for being genetically, ecologically, and culturally distinct. The current team observing this group has been watching them since 2018, hoping to learn more about their distinct behaviors, like foraging and socializing.
“This finding highlights yet another way these whales’ society and culture is unique and the importance of recovering the southern resident killer whale population,” said Weiss in the press release.
While it remains a mystery whether tool manufacturing and usage are a special feature of these whales or a practice shared by other whale populations, the findings are changing the way we understand marine mammals. By observing this behavior, scientists now know whales are capable of using tools and can use this knowledge to open up whole new areas of marine research.
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Article Sources
Our writers at Discovermagazine.com use peer-reviewed studies and high-quality sources for our articles, and our editors review for scientific accuracy and editorial standards. Review the sources used below for this article:
Current Biology. Manufacture and use of allogrooming tools by wild killer whales
As the marketing coordinator at Discover Magazine, Stephanie Edwards interacts with readers across Discover's social media channels and writes digital content. Offline, she is a contract lecturer in English & Cultural Studies at Lakehead University, teaching courses on everything from professional communication to Taylor Swift, and received her graduate degrees in the same department from McMaster University. You can find more of her science writing in Lab Manager and her short fiction in anthologies and literary magazine across the horror genre.
