Ocean chorus: Male bottlenose dolphins sing in synchronised duets to impress females
- Biologists analysed recordings of dolphins from Western Australia’s Shark Bay
- They found that dolphins coordinate their behaviour when working together
- They match the tempo of each other’s calls, moving and signing in time
- It had been thought that humans were the only animals to sync actions to bond
Male bottlenose dolphins sing synchronised ‘duets’ — matching the tempo of each other’s calls when working — to impress females, a study has found.
Researchers analysed long-term audio recordings of a dolphin population from Western Australia’s Shark Bay.
The team found that male dolphins co-ordinate their behaviour in a similar way to humans when they are working together.
Male dolphins were shown to match the tempo of their partner’s calls and sometimes produce their calls in time, alongside matching their movements.
It was previously thought that only humans used both physical and verbal synchronised actions to strengthen bonds and improve co-operation.
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Male bottlenose dolphins sing synchronised ‘duets’ — matching the tempo of each other’s calls when working — to impress females, a study has found
‘Male dolphins need to work together to herd a female and defend her from rival alliances,’ said paper author and biologist Stephanie King of the University of Bristol.
‘However, she added, they are also competing to fertilise her.’
‘Such synchronous and coordinated behaviour between allied males may therefore promote co-operative behaviour and regulate stress — as it has been shown to do in humans.’
In humans, synchronised actions can lead to increased feelings of bonding, foster co-operation and reduce the perceived threat from rivals.
Apart from humans, very few animals co-ordinate both vocal signs and physical movement when working together.
The researchers found that male bottlenose dolphins not only synchronise their movements but also their vocal behaviour when working in alliances.
Male dolphins were shown to match the tempo of their partner’s calls and sometimes produce their calls in time, alongside matching their movements. It was previously thought that only humans used both physical and verbal synchronised actions to strengthen bonds
Researchers analysed long-term audio recordings of a dolphin population from Western Australia’s Shark Bay. The team found that male dolphins co-ordinate their behaviour in a similar way to humans when they are working together
Male bottlenose dolphins ‘can form alliances that can last for decades,’ said paper author and biologist Bronte Moore of the University of Western Australia.
‘To advertise their alliance relationships and maintain their social bonds, they rely on synchronous movements,’ she added.
The full findings of the study were published in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences.