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New Zealand; Pacific
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Patterns of paternity offer crucial insights into a species’ mating system and population growth. Parentage analyses in cetaceans are rare, and the underlying forces of sexual selection acting on their mating behaviours remain poorly understood. By combining 25 years of photo-identification and genetic data, we assess patterns of paternity and reproductive autonomy of an endangered humpback whale breeding population in New Caledonia (Oceania, South Pacific). Our results provide critical insights into the mating competition of male humpback whales and population dynamics across Oceanian populations, two important factors affecting the slow recovery from whaling across the South Pacific region.
Expert Reaction
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Dr Emma Carroll, Associate Professor of Biological Sciences, University of Auckland
Our research shows that competition between male humpback whales is more about having any offspring at all, rather than a few males having lots of offspring at the expense of others.
"While this work uses an amazing 25 year dataset from a South Pacific humpback whale wintering ground, the shadow of whaling likely hangs over the population. It could be as the population recovers, patterns in reproduction change.
"This work was only possible through a long-term collaboration between IRD in New Caledonia, the University of St Andrews and the University of Auckland.
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