The diving behaviour of mammal-eating killer whales (Orcinus orca): variations with ecological not physiological factors
Mammal-eating killer whales (Orcinus orca (L., 1758)) are a rare example of social predators that hunt together in groups of sexually dimorphic adults and juveniles with diverse physiological diving capacities. Day–night ecological differences should also affect diving as their prey show diel variat...
Published in: | Canadian Journal of Zoology |
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Language: | English |
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NRC Research Press (Canadian Science Publishing) / Canadian Society of Zoologists
2010
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Online Access: | http://insight.cumbria.ac.uk/id/eprint/1976/ https://insight.cumbria.ac.uk/id/eprint/1976/1/Deecke_TheDivingBehaviour.pdf https://doi.org/10.1139/Z10-080 |
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ftunivcumbria:oai:insight.cumbria.ac.uk:1976 2023-05-15T17:53:36+02:00 The diving behaviour of mammal-eating killer whales (Orcinus orca): variations with ecological not physiological factors Miller, Patrick J.O. Shapiro, Ari Daniel Deecke, Volker B. 2010-11-02 application/pdf http://insight.cumbria.ac.uk/id/eprint/1976/ https://insight.cumbria.ac.uk/id/eprint/1976/1/Deecke_TheDivingBehaviour.pdf https://doi.org/10.1139/Z10-080 en eng NRC Research Press (Canadian Science Publishing) / Canadian Society of Zoologists https://insight.cumbria.ac.uk/id/eprint/1976/1/Deecke_TheDivingBehaviour.pdf Miller, Patrick J.O., Shapiro, Ari Daniel and Deecke, Volker B. (2010) The diving behaviour of mammal-eating killer whales (Orcinus orca): variations with ecological not physiological factors. Canadian Journal of Zoology, 88 (11). pp. 1103-1112. doi:10.1139/Z10-080 cc_by_nc_4 CC-BY-NC 593 Marine & seashore invertebrates 577 Ecology Article PeerReviewed 2010 ftunivcumbria https://doi.org/10.1139/Z10-080 2022-02-22T08:18:32Z Mammal-eating killer whales (Orcinus orca (L., 1758)) are a rare example of social predators that hunt together in groups of sexually dimorphic adults and juveniles with diverse physiological diving capacities. Day–night ecological differences should also affect diving as their prey show diel variation in activity and mammal-eating killer whales do not rely on echolocation for prey detection. Our objective was to explore the extent to which physiological aerobic capacities versus ecological factors shape the diving behaviour of this breath-hold diver. We used suction-cup-attached depth recorders (Dtags) to record 7608 dives of 11 animals in southeast Alaska. Analysis of dive sequences revealed a strong bout structure in both dive depth and duration. Day–night comparisons revealed reduced rates of deep dives, longer shallow dives, and shallower long-duration dives at night. In contrast, dive variables did not differ by age–sex class. Estimates of the aerobic dive limit (cADL) suggest that juveniles exceeded their cADL during as much as 15% of long dives, whereas adult males and females never exceeded their cADL. Mammal-eating killer whales in this area appear to employ a strategy of physiological compromise, with smaller group members diving nearer their physiological limits and large-bodied males scaling down their physiological performance. Article in Journal/Newspaper Orca Orcinus orca Alaska University of Cumbria: Insight Canadian Journal of Zoology 88 11 1103 1112 |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
University of Cumbria: Insight |
op_collection_id |
ftunivcumbria |
language |
English |
topic |
593 Marine & seashore invertebrates 577 Ecology |
spellingShingle |
593 Marine & seashore invertebrates 577 Ecology Miller, Patrick J.O. Shapiro, Ari Daniel Deecke, Volker B. The diving behaviour of mammal-eating killer whales (Orcinus orca): variations with ecological not physiological factors |
topic_facet |
593 Marine & seashore invertebrates 577 Ecology |
description |
Mammal-eating killer whales (Orcinus orca (L., 1758)) are a rare example of social predators that hunt together in groups of sexually dimorphic adults and juveniles with diverse physiological diving capacities. Day–night ecological differences should also affect diving as their prey show diel variation in activity and mammal-eating killer whales do not rely on echolocation for prey detection. Our objective was to explore the extent to which physiological aerobic capacities versus ecological factors shape the diving behaviour of this breath-hold diver. We used suction-cup-attached depth recorders (Dtags) to record 7608 dives of 11 animals in southeast Alaska. Analysis of dive sequences revealed a strong bout structure in both dive depth and duration. Day–night comparisons revealed reduced rates of deep dives, longer shallow dives, and shallower long-duration dives at night. In contrast, dive variables did not differ by age–sex class. Estimates of the aerobic dive limit (cADL) suggest that juveniles exceeded their cADL during as much as 15% of long dives, whereas adult males and females never exceeded their cADL. Mammal-eating killer whales in this area appear to employ a strategy of physiological compromise, with smaller group members diving nearer their physiological limits and large-bodied males scaling down their physiological performance. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Miller, Patrick J.O. Shapiro, Ari Daniel Deecke, Volker B. |
author_facet |
Miller, Patrick J.O. Shapiro, Ari Daniel Deecke, Volker B. |
author_sort |
Miller, Patrick J.O. |
title |
The diving behaviour of mammal-eating killer whales (Orcinus orca): variations with ecological not physiological factors |
title_short |
The diving behaviour of mammal-eating killer whales (Orcinus orca): variations with ecological not physiological factors |
title_full |
The diving behaviour of mammal-eating killer whales (Orcinus orca): variations with ecological not physiological factors |
title_fullStr |
The diving behaviour of mammal-eating killer whales (Orcinus orca): variations with ecological not physiological factors |
title_full_unstemmed |
The diving behaviour of mammal-eating killer whales (Orcinus orca): variations with ecological not physiological factors |
title_sort |
diving behaviour of mammal-eating killer whales (orcinus orca): variations with ecological not physiological factors |
publisher |
NRC Research Press (Canadian Science Publishing) / Canadian Society of Zoologists |
publishDate |
2010 |
url |
http://insight.cumbria.ac.uk/id/eprint/1976/ https://insight.cumbria.ac.uk/id/eprint/1976/1/Deecke_TheDivingBehaviour.pdf https://doi.org/10.1139/Z10-080 |
genre |
Orca Orcinus orca Alaska |
genre_facet |
Orca Orcinus orca Alaska |
op_relation |
https://insight.cumbria.ac.uk/id/eprint/1976/1/Deecke_TheDivingBehaviour.pdf Miller, Patrick J.O., Shapiro, Ari Daniel and Deecke, Volker B. (2010) The diving behaviour of mammal-eating killer whales (Orcinus orca): variations with ecological not physiological factors. Canadian Journal of Zoology, 88 (11). pp. 1103-1112. doi:10.1139/Z10-080 |
op_rights |
cc_by_nc_4 |
op_rightsnorm |
CC-BY-NC |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1139/Z10-080 |
container_title |
Canadian Journal of Zoology |
container_volume |
88 |
container_issue |
11 |
container_start_page |
1103 |
op_container_end_page |
1112 |
_version_ |
1766161299696254976 |