21.09.2023 – Emotion in the ocean

Short-finned pilot whales (Globicephala macrorhynchus) belong to Madeira’s most important predators and are symbolic for intelligent life in the ocean on so many levels. Pilot whales are generally encountered in family pods with a matriarchal structure, meaning all females are involved in the caring and nurturing of the younger members of the pod. This helps maintain the strong bonds shared by all individuals in the family which are so strong that the animals never abandon one another, even in the face of certain death. This explains why pilot whales are often involved in mass stranding events and protect females grieving the loss of their young, occurrences which have unfortunately become more frequent with the increasing amount of noise and chemical pollution in our oceans.

We met pilot whales during both trips today and the incredibly strong relationships between the observed individuals were openly demonstrated through constant body contact during the sighting, a sort of pilot whale “cuddling” amidst the choppy waters. We even encountered a pod of Bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) in the morning, dolphins with a completely different social structure but an emotional intelligence that easily matches that of their larger delphinid cousins.

During sightings our team always does its best to emphasise that emotional intelligence takes many forms within the animals kingdom and that we can be proud to share our planet with such creatures!

By Paula Thake

Sightings of the day

Ribeira Brava

09:30 Bottlenose dolphins, Short-finned pilot whales

Stenella

14:00 Short-finned pilot whales