Male humpback whales in Maui.Photo:Lyle Krannichfeld/Brandi Romano/PWF/SWNS
Lyle Krannichfeld/Brandi Romano/PWF/SWNS
Twohumpback whaleswere photographed having sex for the first time in their species' history — and both partners happened to be male.
As the two males approached their boat, the photographers saw that one of them “was visibly thin and covered in whale lice,” which drew their attention because it was a sign of poor health, the SWNS report said.
Two humpback whales observed copulating for the first time ever.Lyle Krannichfeld/Brandi Romano/PWF/SWNS
A second, healthier whale kept approaching the first whale and “using its pectoral fins to hold the injured whale in place, and initiating shallow, brief penetrations,” the report said.
The animals slowly circled the boat a few times, which allowed the photographs to be taken while Krannichfeld and Romano remained within a legal distance of the whales. It’s illegal in Hawaii to swim with or approach humpback whales within 100 yards.
Whales in Maui in January 2022.Lyle Krannichfeld/Brandi Romano/PWF/SWNS
The photographers recalled their encounter to Stephanie Stack, a whale researcher and the lead author on Tuesday’s paper inMarine Animal Science.
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A humpback whale in Maui.Lyle Krannichfeld/Brandi Romano/PWF/SWNS
source: people.com
