Groups of related belugas (Delphinapterus leucas) travel together during their seasonal migrations in and around Hudson Bay.

ABSTRACT: Social structure involving long-term associations with relatives should facilitate the learning of complex behaviours such as long-distance migration. In and around Hudson Bay (Canada), three stocks of beluga whales form a panmictic unit, but have different migratory behaviours associated with different summering areas. We analysed genetic variation at 13 microsatellite loci among 1524 belugas, to test hypotheses about social structure in belugas. We found significant proportions of mother-offspring pairs throughout the migratory cycle, but average relatedness extended beyond close kinship only during migration. Average relatedness was significantly above random expectations for pairs caught at the same site but on different days or months of a year, suggesting that belugas maintain associ

SUBMITTER: Colbeck GJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3574313 | biostudies-literature | 2013 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature