Moby Dick was right! Sperm whales do HEADBUTT each other, study finds

Moby Dick was right – sperm whales really do headbutt each other.

For the very first time, scientists from the University of St Andrews have captured footage of sperm whales using their heads to deliberately strike each other. 

Until now, this behaviour has been confined to accounts from 19th century mariners, as well as Herman Melville’s classic 1851 tale. 

However, using drone technology, the researchers were able to catch whales in the Azores and Balearic islands in the act. 

The function of this behaviour remains unclear, although the researchers hope further observations will help to unravel the mystery. 

‘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,’ said Dr Alec Burslem, lead author of the study. 

‘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’.

The idea that sperm whales use their heads to push and strike objects has been reported by mariners since the open–boat whaling of the 19th century. 

The most famous example is the Essex – a ship that was said to have been sunk by two head–on strikes from a large bull sperm whale off the Galapagos in 1820. 

The Essex served as the inspiration for Moby Dick. 

‘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,’ explained Owen Chase, First mate upon the Essex.

‘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.’

To prove this behaviour once and for all, the researchers headed to the Azores and Balearic islands between 2020 and 2022. 

While they expected they might see it in male adult whales, drone footage actually showed that it was sub–adult whales engaging in headbutting. 

‘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,’ Dr Burslem said.

The scientists still don’t know why the whales engage in this behaviour, although they have several theories. 

Firstly, the headbutting may have originated from physical contests between sperm whales, with much of the action taking place under the surface – hence, why humans haven’t seen it yet. 

Others point out that using the head as a weapon would be unlikely to have been favoured by evolution, given many of the most crucial structures are located in the head.   

The team now hope to carry out further observations to understand exactly why this behaviour has persisted for so long. 

Sperm whales have the largest brain on Earth, communicate through a complex system and live in tight knit family groups

Sperm Whales belong to the suborder of toothed whales and dolphins, known as odontocetes, and is one of the easiest whales to identify at sea. 

The creatures gained their name during the days of commercial whaling.

Whalers thought that their large square heads were huge reservoirs for sperm, because when the head was cut open it was found to contain a milky white substance.

An intestinal secretion called ambergris found in sperm whales was used as a fixative in the perfume industry.

At one time, it was worth more than its weight in gold but this is no longer the case.

Its skin is dark or brownish grey, with white markings around the lower jaw and underside. It has relatively short, stubby flippers and a low hump instead of a dorsal fin. 

Its diet is largely made up of squid. The creatures have a life expectancy roughly equivalent to a human’s, at around 70 years.

Males grow to around 18.3 metres (60 feet), with females reaching 12 metres (40 feet). Their young, or calfs, grow to around 3.5 metres (11 feet).

They have a maximum weight of around 57,000 kilograms (125 tonnes) for males.

The sperm whale’s huge head, which is up to 1/3 of its overall body length, houses the heaviest brain in the animal kingdom.

It also contains a cavity large enough for a small car to fit inside which holds a yellowish wax known as spermaceti oil, thought to help in buoyancy control when diving and act as an acoustic lens.

They have between 40 and 52 teeth in their long, narrow lower jaw which are thick and conical, and can grow to 20cm (eight inches) long and weigh 1kg (two pounds) each.

The sperm whale is one of the deepest diving mammals in the world, regularly making dives of up to 400 metres (1,300 feet) sometimes reaching depths of up to two to three kilometres (one to two miles)

It is thought to be able to hold its breath for up to two hours, although 45 minutes is the average dive time.

Sperm whales are found in most of the world’s oceans, except the high Arctic, and prefer deep waters.

The exact current worldwide population is not known, but it is estimated at around 100,000. The sperm whale is listed as a vulnerable species.