Scientists discover unusual whale-dolphin hybrid swimming off the coast of Kauai

  • The team first came across what they believed to be a hybrid in August 2017
  • A biopsy later confirmed their suspicions, revealing it to be a whale-dolphin mix
  • They say it's hybrid between a melon-headed whale and rough-toothed dolphin 

By Cheyenne Macdonald For Dailymail.com

Published: | Updated:

Scientists have confirmed that an unusual mammal spotted swimming off the coast of Kauai is a cross between a whale and a dolphin.

The rare creature is a hybrid between a melon-headed whale and a rough-toothed dolphin, according to researchers from Cascadia Research Collective.

It's the first of its kind ever documented, and was seen spending most of its time alongside another melon-headed whale.

The rare creature is a hybrid between a melon-headed whale and a rough-toothed dolphin, according to researchers from Cascadia Research Collective. The hybrid is shown in the foreground of the image

The rare creature is a hybrid between a melon-headed whale and a rough-toothed dolphin, according to researchers from Cascadia Research Collective. The hybrid is shown in the foreground of the image

The team first came across what they believed to be a hybrid in August 2017, during a two-week tagging and monitoring effort.

Both pigmentation and morphological characteristics suggested it may be a hybrid resulting from a melon-headed whale and a rough-toothed dolphin mating, scientists explained in the new report.

But, it was a biopsy that confirmed their suspicions.

'Genetic analyses of a biopsy sample obtained from the putative hybrid in comparison to a melon-headed whale and a rough-toothed dolphin indicated that the individual has the genotype expected for an F1 hybrid at 11 of 14 nucleotide positions,' the authors wrote.

'This is the first known hybrid between these two species.'

Project leader Robin Baird added: 'Hybrids among different species of whales and dolphins have been previously recorded, but this is the first case of a hybrid between these two species, and only the third confirmed case [with genetics] of a wild-born hybrid between two [Delphinidae] species.' 

The researchers leading the study say this was their 'most unusual finding,' according to The Garden Island.

It was observed swimming with a melon-headed whale, and together, the pair covered a lot of territory.

Over the course of eight days, the researchers say they moved about 486 miles (786 kilometers) and stayed about 27 miles (44 kilometers) from the shore.

The team tracked numerous species during the study, including melon-headed whales and pantropical spotted dolphins – both of which are rarely seen off the Hawaiian islands.

Scientists who found the specimen tracked numerous species during a study off the island of Kauai last year. Pictured is the area the researchers covered during their fieldwork

The team tracked numerous species during the study, including melon-headed whales and pantropical spotted dolphins – both of which are rarely seen off the Hawaiian islands

They were also able to capture acoustic recordings of their vocalizations in the area, by passively monitoring them through the Pacific Missile Range Facility.

This is the first time they've managed to do this.

'We don't know a lot about how they use the area yet,' lead researcher Robin Baird told the Garden Island.

'The reason is that they're just not in the area very often and someone has to be on the water to say 'yeah, that's a melon-headed whale.'

The team will return to the area next month to collect additional data on its marine inhabitants.

HOW DO WHALES COMMUNICATE AND COULD THEY ONE DAY TALK TO HUMANS?

How do whales communicate?  

Whales are known for using complex clicks and singing to communicate with each other - even if they are hundreds of miles apart.

Whales that are closely related or live together produce similar pulsed calls that carry vocal characteristics distinct to the group, known as a dialect. 

Clicks are believed to be primarily used for navigation and identifying objects such as prey in the environment but they are also used for social interactions.

Members of a pod have similar calls known as a dialect, which is composed of types of discrete, repetitive calls.

Newborns copy the call of their mother.

It's thought that individuals learn their dialect though contact with their mothers and other pod members.

Norwegian and Icelandic herring-eating orcas are believed to have different vocalisations for activities such as hunting and travelling. 

Could they talk to humans? 

Previously researchers thought mimicking human speech was limited to some primates, birds, elephants, dolphins and seals.

The fact the whale produces these sounds shows they are able to learn sounds by copying and helps us understand their lives in the wild. 

However, when Wikie says 'hello' it means absolutely nothing to her. 

She does not attach any meaning to this sound and is not 'talking' to humans.

The word is completely out of the normal sound repertoire of whales and was chosen as a nonsense sound.

When Wikie says 'hello' it means absolutely nothing to her. She does not attach any meaning to this sound and is not 'talking' to humans

When Wikie says 'hello' it means absolutely nothing to her. She does not attach any meaning to this sound and is not 'talking' to humans

Although the researchers did not set out to test Wikie's communication skills, the scientist who led the study believes basic 'conversations' with her may one day be possible.

Dr Jose Abramson, from Complutense de Madrid University in Spain, said: 'Yes, it's conceivable ... if you have labels, descriptions of what things are. 

'It has been done before with a famous grey parrot and dolphins using American sign language - sentences like 'bring me this object' or 'put this object above or below the other'.' 

The experiment proves there is a lot of complex communication happening among whales and dolphins. 

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