Sperm whales habituate to research vessels engaged in photoidentification

Abstract

Wildlife research has the potential to affect the subject animals. These effects can be problematic from ethical and management perspectives, as well as for the effectiveness of the research process itself. For individually-based behavioral research, repeated identifications are often necessary, which can lead to habituation or sensitization as animal responses to the researchers change over time because of learning. Sperm whales ( Physeter macrocephalus ) photoidentified off the Galápagos Islands became more tolerant of vessels engaged in photoidentification as they gained more experience of the vessels (as indicated by reductions in both the proportion of poor photographs taken and the range to the photographed whales). Thus, the whales habituated to the photoidentification process, making it more effective and suggesting little deleterious impact. Studies of habituation or sensitization should be carried out when wild animals are repeatedly exposed to disturbance from research activities.