by By Will Dunham
(Reuters) -Killer whales are known for exceptional intelligence, which show complex social structures and advanced communication. New research offers new evidence for this and documents how these marine mammals use stems of seaweed as aids to care for each other – such as in: “You scratch my back and I will scratch yours.”
With the help of drones to observe a population of murderous whales in the Salish Zee, part of the Pacific between the state of Washington and British Columbia, researchers noted that these predators are concerned with a behavior that they called “Allokelping”, a few familiar examples of tool use by Zeezoogier.
The murderous whales find large stems of a kind of seaweed called bull kelp, either attached to the seabed or floating on the surface. They then bite from the end of the stem, position them between themselves and a different murderous whale and roll the kelp between their bodies.
The researchers assume that behavior promotes skin health and at the same time strengthens social bonds. Other populations of murderous whales have been observed that rub their bodies on smooth stone beaches, possibly to remove dead skin.
“De meeste voorbeelden van gereedschapsgebruik bij dieren omvatten het oplossen van ecologische problemen, zoals het verkrijgen van toegang tot voedsel. Chimpansees gebruiken bijvoorbeeld sticks voor vissen voor termieten. Wat opmerkelijk is aan deze ontdekking is dat de tool – de Kelp – de Kelp wordt gebruikt om geen voedsel te verkrijgen, maar om sociale interactie te vergemakkelijken,” zei marine -bioloog Darren Croft van de universiteit van de universiteit van de universiteit van de universiteit van de universiteit of the University of the University of the University of the Study Study Study Study.
“This kind of socially motivated tool use is extremely rare in non-human animals and has previously only been observed in a small number of primates, usually in captivity,” added Croft, executive director of the Center for Whale Research, a scientific organization in the state of Washington, which has been studied since the 1970s.
The researchers documented the behavior among both male and female murderous whales of all ages. It probably plays an important role in their social life, Croft said.
There are some other examples of tool use in marine mammals. Zee -Tters use rocks and other hard objects to crack open scales to get the meat in it. And certain dolphins use marine sponges to protect their blows and generate the seabed while foraging. The researchers said that the behavior goes one step further because of the murderous whales because they change an object for use as a tool.
“While this is not the first documented Case of Cetacean or Marine Mammal Tool Use, IT is – as far as we know – the first case of Cetacean Tool Manufacturing with Tool use. The Whales are not just finding perfect lengths or kelpy stalking stalking stalking stalking stalking stalking stalking stalking stalking stalking stalking stalking stalking stalking stalking stalking stalking stalking, buts stalking stalking stalking, stalking stalking, stalking stalking, stalking stalking, stalking stalking, stalking stalking, stalking stalking, stalking, stalking, stalking, stalking, stalking, stalks, stalks, stalks, stalks, stalks, stalks, stalks, stalksythinging, stalking, Create the Pieces they are using for allokeling, “Said Study Co-Author Rachel John, A University of Exeter Graduate Student Studying Killer Walvis behavior.
“Another important part of what makes this behavior so unique is the fact that they collaborate with a partner without the use of hands or handy appendices. They use their mouths to initially position the kelp, but then they only use the momentum and pressure of the core of their bodies to maintain contact with each other and the kelp between them,” “
The behavior is only known for this murderous whale population.
“We discovered that individuals with a more visible peeling skin were more likely to explain, which suggests that the behavior can serve a skin care function. Brown seaweeds such as kelp are known to have antibacterial properties, so it is plausible that rubbing with kelp helps improve the health of the skin,” said Croftt.
“Secondly, we think that this behavior is likely to play a role in maintaining social bindings. It is known that physical contact is important for social cohesion for many species, including people. Just like we can cuddle a friend that we have not seen in a while, it is possible that Allokelping serves to strengthen social relationships between whales,” Croftt added.
This kelp grows in cold and nutrient-rich coastal and intertidal waters and thrives on the west coast of North America, including the home range of these murderous whales.
This population runs a high risk of extinction, said Croft, with only 73 people counted in the last census. They are highly specialized salmon hunters, especially dependent on Chinook -ozalm. As the salmon populations have fallen, partly because of the construction of dam on spawning ignons, the whales have difficulty finding enough food.
“In short, they are starving,” said Croft.
(Reporting by Will Dunham in Washington, editing by Rosalba O’Brien)
