For female southern right whales ( Eubalaena australis ), getting the best mate takes practice, according to Earthwatch-supported research findings recently published. Earthwatch teams working with Dr. Peter Best, Senior Research Officer of the Mammal Research Institute, University of Pretoria, studied whale reproductive behavior in South African coastal waters for three years in an effort to improve their conservation.

In a recent issue of the journal Behavior , Best and colleagues report on the possible function of "surface active groups," social groups characterized by male whales focusing on a central female, apparently associated with courtship and mating. They found that all of the focal females identified were immature. Some females were as young as two years old; this in a species that typically calves for the first time at age seven or eight. The scientists found that no conceptions resulted from the groupings.

"Other people have physically described mating behavior in right whales," said Best, principal investigator of the Earthwatch-supported Whales of South Africa project. "This is the first time the nature of surface active groups, and the consequences of being a focal female, have been examined in detail during what is believed to be the breeding season for southern right whales."

The courtship behavior observed raises the distinct possibility that immature females "practice" attracting mates in preparation for their future mating strategy. Female southern right whales only reproduce every three years or more, each time producing only one calf, so male competition for mates stands to be intense. Females may attract and choose larger males because size at birth is linked to calf survival.

"It is hard to draw conclusions when so little is still known about the right whale's mating system," said Best. "But at face value, the observations do suggest that 'experimentation' may be important in the development of mating strategies for animals, such as southern right whales, with such low reproductive rates."

The findings were the result of a three-year research program supported by Earthwatch in the late 1990s, which included both photo-identification and genetic sampling of social groups to southern right whales in South African coastal waters. Earthwatch teams helped spot hundreds of whales, record data, sketch distinctive features of the whales, and process biopsies for DNA analysis.

"Without the help of Earthwatch volunteers we could not have achieved the levels of sampling that we did," said Best, "getting biopsies from up to 20 animals a day, for a total of some 640 animals sampled." Further analysis will lead to findings on paternity of calves, male mating success, and details on the mating strategy of southern right whales, still to be published.

Best's research is an important link to future conservation of right whale populations.

While southern right whales have staged a steady recovery since large-scale whaling ended, northern right whales ( E. glacialis ) are on the brink of extinction, possibly due to reproductive failure. A successful recovery will require basic information on right whale reproductive behavior, such as the findings of Best's Earthwatch teams off the coast of South Africa..

Earthwatch Institute is an international nonprofit organization which supports scientific field research worldwide by offering members of the public unique opportunities to work alongside leading field scientists and researchers. The Institute's mission is to engage people worldwide in scientific field research and education to promote the understanding and action necessary for a sustainable environment.