Projects per year
Abstract
Our shared mammalian heritage makes cetaceans extremely important in any comparative analysis. There is a wide diversity of cetacean taxa, but, given their aquatic lifestyle, we know relatively little about most species. A handful of well-studied species provide convincing evidence that cultural transmission occurs in a number of behavioural contexts including foraging, communication, and migration. In this chapter, the authors highlight examples of social learning, cultural evolution, and the emergence of local cultures, using several case studies. These include vocal learning and multiple foraging traditions in bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops sp.), vocal clans and cultural hitchhiking in sperm whales (Physeter macrocephalus), migratory culture in southern right whales (Eubalaena australis), song culture and foraging traditions in humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae), and the evolution of killer whale (Orcinus orca) ecotypes. Finally, the authors explore how some of these behaviours are linked to recent genomic findings suggesting that gene-culture coevolution is occurring in some populations, and how knowledge of cultural differences among groups and populations can inform conservation management.
Original language | English |
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Title of host publication | The Oxford handbook of cultural evolution |
Editors | Jamshid J. Tehrani, Jeremy Kendal, Rachel Kendal |
Place of Publication | Oxford |
Publisher | Oxford University Press |
Number of pages | 20 |
ISBN (Electronic) | 9780191905780 |
ISBN (Print) | 9780198869252 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | E-pub ahead of print - 22 May 2024 |
Keywords
- Cetaceans
- Vocal learning
- Song
- Foraging traditions
- Migratory culture
- Clans
- Cultural evolution
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Ellen Garland URF Extension 2022 - 2025: URF Renewal - YGR028
Garland, E. C. (PI)
1/10/22 → 30/09/25
Project: Fellowship
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Sexy Singing: Cultural Evolution: Sexy singing: cultural evolution and sexual selection in a complex song display
Garland, E. C. (PI)
1/10/17 → 30/09/22
Project: Fellowship