Young male dolphins may practice their flirtation skills together so that when they grow up, they are better at finding a mate. Research indicates that the more time that young male dolphins engage in play with other youngsters, the more likely it was that they had offspring when they grew up.
As adults, pairs or trios of allied males will coordinate their behaviour to consort individual females. This work shows that the young males practice this coordination with their likely future allies, years before they become sexually mature.
The researchers found that young male dolphins formed alliances in twos and threes. The group then expanded up to about 14 members. Together they helped each other find females with whom they could mate. It often involves stealing the females from other alliances and defending females against attacks from rivals. This is why it seems they formed alliances.
The researchers analysed 30 years of information tracking the behaviour of young male dolphins aged between four and 14 in Shark Bay, Western Australia.
And during these practice play sessions, the young males produced clicking noises called “pops”. It’s the sound that adult dolphins use to attract mates. This indicated that they were practising their skills years before they were sexually mature.
The study was led by Dr. Katy Holmes, who said:
We found that juvenile play involves immature versions of adult reproductive behaviours that are crucial for males to access and meet with oestrous females, and the time spent doing these play behaviours predicts how many offspring males eventually sire as adults. Our work is exciting because historically it has been notoriously difficult to link play behaviour to reproductive success, in this case the number of sired offspring, in wild animals.
Dr. Stephanie King, an associate professor at the University of Bristol’s School of Biological Sciences added:
The reasons that animals play together have long remained a mystery. This study provides compelling support for the idea that animals in the wild play together to practice behaviours that will be important for them as adults, and that if they practice enough, they will be more successful as adults.
The research is published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
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Thanks for posting another story which tells us more about the similarities between us and ‘them’ (all animals). We are fundamentally the same. It is good to remind us of that. I hope that in a small way it improves animal welfare.
Dolphins are widely considered to be one of the most intelligent animals on Earth. Their brains are complex, and they exhibit a number of behaviors that suggest high intelligence, such as:
Problem-solving: Dolphins have been observed using tools, such as sponges to protect their snouts while foraging, and cooperating to herd fish.
Social learning: Dolphins can learn new behaviors from each other, and different pods have been known to develop their own unique traditions.
Communication: Dolphins have a complex vocal repertoire that they use to communicate with each other. They may even have names for each other.
Self-awareness: Some dolphins have been shown to recognize themselves in mirrors, which is a sign of self-awareness.
While intelligence is difficult to define and quantify definitively, by most measures, dolphins are near the top of the list among animal species.