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diagnosedwolf t1_j7z3no7 wrote

Reply to comment by Paradox_Dolphin in Killer whale moms are still supporting their adult sons — and it's costing them by RestSnorlax

> Obviously, they have no concept of the fact that a hairless land ape was causing all of this destruction

I wouldn’t be so sure of this. Whales are known to not only understand the impact humans have on their lives, they have changed intergeneral behaviour because of it.

There is a species of whale that used to sing loudly in the Arctic. It was heavily hunted in the 1800s, and thought to be extinct for a while in the 1900s because it wasn’t seen or heard for decades. Only when recording devices were left behind did the whales get “rediscovered”.

It turned out that the whales had straight-up learnt that humans were hunting them in boats, so they went quiet and hid when they perceived human presence. They taught their children how to do this, and every generation since.

Studies with other species of whales showed that they can perceive the difference between a research boat and a whaling ship.

TLDR: whales understand an awful lot

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uzenik t1_j7za0ef wrote

So like african elephants that recognoze language that is used by tribes that hunt them, and those that don't.

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Paradox_Dolphin t1_j80voy9 wrote

Wow, animal intelligence never stops amazing me.

It is so sad to me that these animals are still hunted. I have this fantasy of working on a whaling ship, and just sabotaging it the entire time. Like, pour olive oil on the deck so people slip. Light nets on fire in the middle of the night. Just make it hell.

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