A multilevel society of herring-eating killer whales indicates adaptation to prey characteristics

Sara B. Tavares, Filipa I.P. Samarra and Patrick J.O. Miller

Behavioral Ecology, 2017, vol. 28, issue 2, 500-514

Abstract: Lay Summary Killer whale social structure has been thought to be prey-type (fish vs. marine mammal) specific. We show that the Icelandic population, which feeds on herring, presents a multilevel society with no clear hierarchical stratification nor coherent social groups. This differs from other populations, suggesting that local ecological characteristics such as traits of the target prey and employed foraging strategy may be important drivers in shaping the social structure of the species.

Keywords: ecological context; hierarchical structure; killer whale; multilevel societies; orca; social structure (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2017
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