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Female dolphins remember who is aggressive when choosing a mating partner, research shows
Researchers observed unavailable female dolphins – those that were older, or with calves – did not show the same avoidant behaviour
TL;DR
- Female dolphins identify males by their unique signature whistles and track their past behavior.
- During mating season, males form alliances to aggressively herd females into consortships.
- Females avoid males exhibiting higher rates of coercion, suggesting they remember past aggressive interactions.
- Consortships can be physically costly and involve lost foraging time for females.
- The study used signature whistles played underwater to observe female dolphin responses.
- Reproductively available females showed stronger avoidance to whistles of more coercive males.
- Unavailable females (older or with calves) did not display the same level of avoidance.
- This behavior highlights the complexity of dolphin societies and female decision-making in mate selection.