Killer whale innovation: teaching animals to use their creativity upon request

Thinking flexibly is a skill that enables animals to adapt to changing environments, which enhances survival. Killer whales, Orcinus orca , as the ocean apex predator display a number of complex cognitive abilities, especially flexible thinking or creativity when it comes to foraging. In human care,...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Animal cognition 2022-10, Vol.25 (5), p.1091-1108
Main Authors: Hill, Heather Manitzas, Weiss, Myriam, Brasseur, Isabelle, Manibusan, Alexander, Sandoval, Irene R., Robeck, Todd, Sigman, Julie, Werner, Kristen, Dudzinski, Kathleen M.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animal behavior
Animals
Aquatic mammals
Behavioral Sciences
Biomedical and Life Sciences
Bottle-Nosed Dolphin
Cetacea
Changing environments
Cognitive ability
Creativity
Dolphins
Dolphins & porpoises
Environmental changes
Female
Females
Humans
Life Sciences
Male
Males
Marine mammals
Orcinus orca
Original Paper
Psychology Research
Stimulus control
Tursiops truncatus
Whale, Killer - psychology
Zoology
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Summary:Thinking flexibly is a skill that enables animals to adapt to changing environments, which enhances survival. Killer whales, Orcinus orca , as the ocean apex predator display a number of complex cognitive abilities, especially flexible thinking or creativity when it comes to foraging. In human care, smaller dolphins and other marine mammals have been trained to think creatively while under stimulus control. The results of these previous studies have demonstrated that bottlenose dolphins, Tursiops truncatus , can create original behaviors in response to an innovative cue. We trained and tested a total of nine killer whales from two different facilities on the innovate concept, using the same methodology. The killer whales ranged in age from 5 to 29 yrs with 4 females and 5 males. The results indicate that the killer whales demonstrated high fluency, originality, some elaboration, and flexibility in their behaviors. Individual variability was observed with younger animals demonstrating more variable behaviors as compared to the older animals. Males seemed to display less complex and lower energy behaviors as compared to females, but this impression may be driven by the age or size of the animal. These results support existing evidence that killer whales are dynamic in their thinking and behavior.
ISSN:1435-9448
1435-9456
DOI:10.1007/s10071-022-01635-3