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Peer-reviewedCC BY 4.0Royal Society Open Science

Pygmy blue whale feeding drives greater nocturnal than diurnal song production

  • Andrew M. Davenport1,2
  • Michele Thums3
  • K. Curt S. Jenner2
  • Micheline-Nicole M. Jenner2
  • Luciana C. Ferreira3
  • Christine Erbe1
  • Ryan Leadbetter1
  • Robert D. McCauley1
  1. 1Centre for Marine Science and Technology, Curtin University 1 , Bentley, Western Australia, Australia
  2. 2Centre for Whale Research (WA) Inc. 2 , Fremantle, Western Australia, Australia
  3. 3Australian Institute of Marine Science, Indian Ocean Marine Research Centre, University of Western Australia 3 , Crawley Western Australia, Australia
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Abstract

Effective management of threatened and migratory species requires monitoring of critical behaviours, such as foraging. Passive acoustic monitoring can provide cost-effective, long-term observations on the relative abundance of vocal animals across large spatial scales. However, linking specific sounds to behavioural contexts can be challenging, especially for cryptic and aquatic species. This study combined passive acoustic and biologging data to explore whether observed periods of greater nocturnal than diurnal song production were linked to feeding by eastern Indian Ocean pygmy blue whales, Balaenoptera musculus brevicauda. The proportion of time available for singing was modelled as a function of geographical region, diel period and the presence or absence of feeding dives with generalized linear mixed models, based on 130.1 days of diving data. Top-ranked models indicated less time was available for singing during diurnal feeding periods compared to nocturnal feeding periods and non-feeding periods during the day and night. These findings suggest that diurnal feeding by pygmy blue whales reduces the time available for song production. Therefore, greater nocturnal than diurnal song production may provide an acoustic indicator of population-level feeding activity for pygmy blue whales between the Perth Canyon and offshore of the northwest shelf of Western Australia.

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Cite

BibTeXRIS
BibTeX
@article{davenport2026pygmy,
  title = {{Pygmy blue whale feeding drives greater nocturnal than diurnal song production}},
  author = {Andrew M. Davenport and Michele Thums and K. Curt S. Jenner and Micheline-Nicole M. Jenner and Luciana C. Ferreira and Christine Erbe and Ryan Leadbetter and Robert D. McCauley},
  journal = {Royal Society Open Science},
  year = {2026},
  month = oct,
  doi = {10.1098/rsos.260954},
  url = {https://royalsocietypublishing.org/rsos/article/13/10/260954/483903/Pygmy-blue-whale-feeding-drives-greater-nocturnal},
  note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY  - JOUR
TI  - Pygmy blue whale feeding drives greater nocturnal than diurnal song production
AU  - Andrew M. Davenport
AU  - Michele Thums
AU  - K. Curt S. Jenner
AU  - Micheline-Nicole M. Jenner
AU  - Luciana C. Ferreira
AU  - Christine Erbe
AU  - Ryan Leadbetter
AU  - Robert D. McCauley
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/10/07
JO  - Royal Society Open Science
DO  - 10.1098/rsos.260954
UR  - https://royalsocietypublishing.org/rsos/article/13/10/260954/483903/Pygmy-blue-whale-feeding-drives-greater-nocturnal
AB  - Effective management of threatened and migratory species requires monitoring of critical behaviours, such as foraging. Passive acoustic monitoring can provide cost-effective, long-term observations on the relative abundance of vocal animals across large spatial scales. However, linking specific sounds to behavioural contexts can be challenging, especially for cryptic and aquatic species. This study combined passive acoustic and biologging data to explore whether observed periods of greater nocturnal than diurnal song production were linked to feeding by eastern Indian Ocean pygmy blue whales, Balaenoptera musculus brevicauda. The proportion of time available for singing was modelled as a function of geographical region, diel period and the presence or absence of feeding dives with generalized linear mixed models, based on 130.1 days of diving data. Top-ranked models indicated less time was available for singing during diurnal feeding periods compared to nocturnal feeding periods and non-feeding periods during the day and night. These findings suggest that diurnal feeding by pygmy blue whales reduces the time available for song production. Therefore, greater nocturnal than diurnal song production may provide an acoustic indicator of population-level feeding activity for pygmy blue whales between the Perth Canyon and offshore of the northwest shelf of Western Australia.
SN  - 2054-5703
ER  -