4.5 Article

The biogeography of group sizes in humpback dolphins (Sousa spp.)

Journal

INTEGRATIVE ZOOLOGY
Volume 16, Issue 4, Pages 527-537

Publisher

WILEY
DOI: 10.1111/1749-4877.12542

Keywords

biogeography; geographic variations; group size; habitat; humpback dolphins; social dynamics; socioecology

Categories

Funding

  1. Major Science and Technology Project in Hainan province [ZDKJ2016009-1-1]
  2. National Natural Science Foundation of China [41306169, 41406182, 41422604]
  3. Ocean Park Conservation Foundation of Hong Kong [AW02-1920]
  4. Chinese White Dolphin Conservation Action Project of Ministry of Agriculture and Rural of People's Republic of China [Y760091HT1]
  5. Biodiversity Investigation, Observation and Assessment Program of Ministry of Ecology and Environment of China [2019-2023]
  6. China-UK Newton Fund PhD Placement from British Council
  7. China Scholarship Council

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The study found that humpback dolphins tend to live in small-sized groups with a mean size of mostly no more than 10 individuals. Geographic variations in group sizes of humpback dolphins are primarily associated with latitude, sea surface temperature, and abundance.
Humpback dolphins (Sousa spp.) are obligate shallow-water and resident species, and they typically live in fission-fusion societies composed of small-sized groups with changeable membership. However, we have scant knowledge of their behavioral ecology, starting with potential factors influencing inter-population variability of their group sizes. Here, we compiled a new global dataset of humpback dolphin group sizes based on 150 published records. Our data indicated an inter-specific consistency of group-living strategy among the 4 species in the Sousa genus, as these species preferred living in small-sized groups with a mean size of mostly no more than 10, a minimum size of single individual or small pairs, and a maximum size of several tens or approximate to 100. In addition, we clearly showed the geographic variations in group sizes of humpback dolphins at a global scale. We found that the geographic variations in humpback dolphin group sizes were primarily associated with the latitude, sea surface temperature, and abundance. To conclude, our findings provide insights into social dynamics and socioecological trade-offs of humpback dolphins, and help better understand how these resident animals adapted to their shallow-water habitats from the perspectives of biogeography and socioecology.

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