Heather M. Hill

The first year of behavioral development and maternal care of beluga (Delphinapterus leucas) calves in human care

The current study provides additional information for the behavioral development and maternal care of belugas or white whales (Delphinapterus leucas) in the care of humans. The behaviors and mother-calf interactions of two female beluga calves were recorded from birth to 12 months as part of a longitudinal study of beluga behavioral development. As expected, the primary calf activity for both calves involved swimming with their mothers. The calves initiated the majority of the separations from and reunions with their mothers and exhibited early bouts of independence. Both mothers bonded with their calves and displayed similar maternal care behaviors but exhibited different behavioral patterns. Despite differences in social groupings, housing, and physical health, the two female belugas followed the behavioral development of beluga calves observed previously.

Development of sociality and emergence of independence in a killer whale (Orcinus orca) calf from birth to 36 months

Dolphin calves spend most of their time swimming with their mother immediately after birth. As they mature, the calves become increasingly independent, and begin to interact more often with other calves, juveniles, and sub-adults. For bottlenose dolphin calves, sociality is related to maternal behaviors. Unfortunately, much less is known about the development of sociality and emergence of independence for killer whale calves. The purpose of this study was to examine the developmental changes in social behaviors and solitary activities of a killer whale calf across a 36-month period. Focal follow video recordings of a mother-calf pair housed at SeaWorld San Antonio were collected 2-6 times a day for 5-15 min at 6-month intervals. Using a sample of randomly selected video recordings at each month, developmental changes in swims and social interactions with her mother, swims and social interactions with non-maternal partners, and solitary activities (e.g., solitary swims, solitary play) were observed across the months. The calf spent most of her time swimming with the mother across the 36-month period. The time the calf socialized with her mother was greater than the time she socialized with others at each month. Besides her mother, the calf socialized more often with the other adult female compared to adult males. As the calf matured, the increase in the time she spent socializing with adult killer whales other than the mother corresponded with an increase in the rate and time spent in solitary play. The developmental trends of sociality and emerging independence replicate research conducted with calves of other dolphin species. Zoo Biol. 36:11-20, 2017.

Responses to familiar and unfamiliar objects by belugas ( Delphinapterus leucas ), bottlenose dolphins ( Tursiops truncatus ), and Pacific white-sided dolphins ( Lagenorhynchus obliquidens )

Previous research with bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) demonstrated their ability to discriminate between familiar and unfamiliar stimuli. Dolphins gazed longer at unfamiliar stimuli. The current study attempted to extend this original research by examining the responses of three species of cetaceans to objects that differed in familiarity. Eleven belugas from two facilities, five bottlenose dolphins and five Pacific white-sided dolphins housed at one facility were presented different objects in a free-swim scenario. The results indicated that the animals gazed the longest at unfamiliar objects, but these gaze durations did not significantly differ from gaze durations when viewing familiar objects. Rather, the animals gazed longer at unfamiliar objects when compared to the apparatus alone. Species differences emerged with longer gaze durations exhibited by belugas and bottlenose dolphins and significantly shorter gaze durations for Pacific white-sided dolphins. It is likely that the animals categorized objects into familiar and unfamiliar categories, but the free-swim paradigm in naturalistic social groupings did not elicit clear responses. Rather this procedure emphasized the importance of attention and individual preferences when investigating familiar and unfamiliar objects, which has implications for cognitive research and enrichment use.

Solitary, observer, parallel, and social object play in the bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus)

Many comparative studies have focused on the emergence of solitary and social play in early development, however, few consider observer and parallel forms of play. In this study, we analyzed approximately 21 h of video recordings and revealed a significant difference between the frequency of solitary, observer, parallel, and social object play states, in calf, juvenile, subadult, and adult bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus). While juveniles engaged in solitary play significantly more than other age groups, both juveniles and calves engaged in observer and social play significantly more than adults and subadults. Within their own age group, calves, juveniles, and subadults all showed a significant preference for solitary play. Calves preferred juvenile partners, while juveniles preferred calves during social play and other juveniles during observer play. Calves and juveniles preferred non-kin partners, especially during observer play. Together, these results have implications for social learning and behavioral transmission through observational play. With this knowledge, we can provide the appropriate social environment to dolphins in managed care with limited or constrained social availability, increasing learning opportunities and developmental outcomes.

Learning to play: A review and theoretical investigation of the developmental mechanisms and functions of cetacean play

Play is a behavioral phenomenon most commonly observed in the young of both solitary and social species. Documentation of play in cetaceans varies across species and settings. Cetacean play behavioral repertoires include a broad range of actions, such as the manipulation of diverse objects, blowing bubbles, chasing conspecifics, and swimming in spirals through the water. As is common in research on animal play, cetacean play has been grouped into categories by its form, including locomotor play, object play, and different variations of social play, such as affiliative games, play fighting, and socio-sexual play. Research has primarily focused on recording the topography of cetacean play and the demographics of the individuals engaging in play. However, these classifications are insufficient to address the possible developmental and societal functions of cetacean play behaviors, or the mechanisms with which play behaviors are spread between conspecifics and acquired by young members of cetacean populations. This article applies several developmental and social learning theories in order to organize current knowledge and guide future research.

Developmental changes in the resting strategies of killer whale mothers and their calves in managed care from birth to 36 months

The development of cetacean sleep has not been explored fully. Questions such as whether cetacean mothers regulate their offspring’s resting behaviour and do resting behaviours change over the course of cetacean development remain unanswered. To address these questions, an investigation of the resting strategies and activity levels for four killer whale (Orcinus orca) calves and their mothers in managed care during free-swim conditions was conducted during the first three years of life. A series of interrelated hypotheses were assessed using three independent sets of archived data (24 h behaviour records, video recordings, and instantaneous sampling) collected from two facilities. Together, the results indicated that mothers adjusted their activity levels based on their calves’ current level of development. Floating, often a preferred resting behaviour, was rarely observed during the first post-parturition month for any of the mother–calf pairs. Rather, the mother–calf pairs tended to display fast-moving mother–calf swims with frequent trajectory changes as the calf gained swimming proficiency. Although floating occurred more frequently over time for all pairs, all four killer whale mother–calf pairs displayed a preference for a slower-paced pattern swim (i.e., swim-rest). Calves preferred to rest with their mothers over resting with others or independently. The similarities in resting strategies displayed by the killer whale mother–calf pairs housed in independent facilities without temporal overlap emphasizes the conserved nature and development of these strategies in a precocial cetacean species with extended maternal care.

The Psychology of Cows? A Case of Over-interpretation and Personification

Reviews of existing literature on topics that have been neglected, such as the subject of the cognitive and affective abilities of cows, are productive and necessary exercises in science (Elwen, Findlay, Kiszka, & Weir, 2011; Mulrow, 1994). These syntheses organize and integrate bodies of literature that have been relatively isolated from one another. If performed systematically and objectively, reviews can highlight areas of research that are in need of more information or identify areas that could be integrated in novel ways. The effort made by Marino and Allen (2017) to gather the extant, fragmented literature regarding the “psychology of cows” was timely and commendable. Most of the research on sensory abilities, learning and cognition, emotion, personality, and social complexity in cows has been conducted within applied contexts, which the authors considered to be a skewed representation based on the statement below:

Reflections: Students' Tribute to Stan Kuczaj (1950-2016)

On April 14, 2016, Animal Behavior and Cognition lost its Editor-in-Chief. But the scientific community and the friends and colleagues of Stanley ‘Stan’ Kuczaj III lost so much more. As many know, Stan began his career in Developmental Psychology, making enormous contributions in the area of language development, but became best known for his many innovative contributions in the area of marine mammal behavior. Stan founded Animal Behavior and Cognition because he was deeply passionate about research with a broad range of topics concerning animal behavior, animal cognition, and animal welfare. He was equally passionate about the idea that science should be accessible to all, and that accessibility should not come at a financial burden to researchers. The current editorial team is committed to carrying on Stan’s vision for the journal, and we believe that its continuation will pay homage to Stan as a researcher, and as a leader within the scientific community.