Social Groups
Members of a group of sperm whales are usually dispersed but sometimes gather to socialise. They may lie quietly together at the surface, or socialise actively by rubbing and rolling around one other, touching, spyhopping and vocalising. Large males join nursery schools of females and their offspring for brief periods to breed, between early winter and early summer. Large males have been observed interacting with all members of the pod, playing with calves and socialising with adults and immature whales.
Foraging Dives
Sperm whales perform long, deep feeding dives. They may remain submerged for about 50 minutes, spending some 10 minutes at the surface between dives. Sperm whales usually 'fluke-up' (lift their tail flukes clear of the water) at the beginning of a deep dive.
Blow
This describes both the act of breathing, and the cloud of water condensation produced when a whale breathes out. When resting between dives, sperm whales exhale about four to six strong blows per minute. The blow of a sperm whale is very distinctive - it is bushy, about five metres high and because of the position of the blowhole, is directed forward and to the left.
While at the surface, sperm whales generally move steadily, blow regularly and continually break the surface. Large males may occur alone or in pairs and lie still at or near the surface for an hour or more when resting.
Breach
Occasionally a sperm whale propels itself out of the water, often clearing the surface with two thirds of its body or more, and splashing down onto the water surface on its back or side.
Behaviour which may indicate disturbance
Identification
The tail of a sperm whale has a unique pattern of nicks and sears along the edge of the fluke. This is the whale's 'fingerprint', each whale has a different pattern and individuals can be recognised from their tail flukes. By photographing the tails of all sperm whales encountered, researchers can build lip a picture of whale's movements and associations with other whales, without disturbing them, This is called photo-identification.
Benign Research and Conservation.
Until several decades ago, our knowledge of whales was based mainly on investigations of dead animals (from whaling operations and whales which stranded on land). We still know relatively little about whales, which live long, highly mobile lives and spend most of their time underwater.
Increasingly, techniques which do not require scientists to kill or harm animals, are being used to study whales. This is termed 'benign research'.
Photo-identification is one such technique. Others include monitoring whales acoustically. The clicks of sperm whales can be heard underwater with a hydrophone well before the whales can be observed visually.
Sperm whales also shed pieces of skin as they dive, which can be collected from the water and used for genetic analysis (DNA fingerprinting). IFAWs research vessel the `Song of Whale' has pioneered new ways of studying sperm whales in the Azores and the Caribbean.
Whale Watchers
Watching whales in their natural habitat can be exciting and educational, but care must be taken to avoid disturbing them, as this could cause them to leave the area, and could interfere with normal feeding, breeding and social behaviour.
Commercial whale watchers should operate to a code of conduct. If you witness breaches of their code of conduct, notify your operator and relevant authorities such as the local Department of Tourism/Fisheries/Conservation,
The following guidelines for whale watch operators were drawn up by a group of experts at an international workshop in 1996 on the 'Special Aspects of Watching Sperm Whales'.