They put the “hump” in humpback whale.
Scientists documented humpback whales makin’ whoopee on camera for the first time ever — as well as the first same-sex penetration by the species at the same time.
The copulating cetaceans photographed by researchers off the coast of Hawaii were both males, according to a report on the findings published in Marine Mammal Science last Tuesday.
Mating and non-reproductive sexual encounters between the giant marine mammals have been rarely observed in the wild and never before captured on camera.
The images are the first photographic documentation of humpback whales copulating. Lyle Krannichfeld/Brandi Romano SWNS
The male-on-male action was photographed near the Molokini crater off the island of Maui on Jan. 19, 2022, after a private boat spotted the pair of whales.
The photographs however reveal a darker story than the revelation of an LGBT-friendly species.
A healthy adult humpback was observed chasing an injured and visibly emaciated adult humpback in circles around the boat.
The healthy male had its penis extruded — instead of hidden within its genital flap like normal — while it pursued the slow-moving male whale, according to the researchers.
The strong whale penetrated the weaker whale’s genital flap multiple times while grasping it with its pectoral fins, as seen in the photographs, before diving into the depths of the sea.
A healthy adult male humpback was observed penetrating a weak and injured male humpback. Lyle Krannichfeld/Brandi Romano SWNS
The humpbacks were later identified by their tail flukes and prior biopsy samples collected by researchers confirmed that both whales were male.
“Here, we have the first documentation of a humpback whale male sexually penetrating another humpback whale, but also the case of an animal that is injured and unhealthy being penetrated by what appears to be a healthy and strong whale,” the report authors wrote.
Scientists said it was difficult to know the exact explanation for the behavior but provided a few possibilities.
The stronger humpback may have mistakenly tried to mate with the ailing one, it could have been reinforcing a social relationship with an injured conspecific or it could have been expressing dominance over the weaker competitor, the authors of the report wrote.
Scientists believe that the healthy male may have penetrated the ailing male in a show of dominance. Lyle Krannichfeld/Brandi Romano SWNS
The antagonizing behavior theory is backed by the ailing whale’s posture during the encounter — bent in a way to resemble the letter S, which has been observed previously during threatening interactions among humpbacks.
Researchers have also once before witnessed a humpback with its penis extruded adjacent to the floating body of a male humpback that died during a fight shortly before.
“It is striking that the only two observations of such behavior in the scientific literature involve ailing or deceased whales,” the researchers wrote.
Scientists do not know if similar sexual behavior would or has occurred between two healthy male humpbacks, but sexual encounters between same-sex pairs have been documented in a wide range of species including other marine mammals like walruses, common bottlenose dolphins, killer whales and grey seals.
Source link: https://nypost.com/2024/03/04/us-news/humpback-whales-photographed-having-sex-specifically-gay-sex-for-the-first-time/