Two male Humpback whales were recently recorded having a homosexual encounter in the wild off the coast of Maui.
According to a new study by the Pacific Whale Foundation published in Marine Mammal Science, humpback whales have been studied extensively but documented instances of reproductive actions have been exceedingly rare. That is until some photographers – Lyle Krannichfeld and Brandi Romano – caught two male humpbacks engaging in sexual contact right below their boat 2 kilometers west of the Molokini crater off the coast of Maui on January 19, 2022.
They sent their photos to scientists who recently confirmed in a peer-reviewed study that the photos were confirmed to be one of very few documented instances of humpback penis extrusion and the very first documented instance of homosexual interactions between humpbacks.
“The sighting occurred when individuals aboard a private stationary vessel, located approximately two km west of the Molokini crater, saw two humpback whales approaching their boat. One whale was visibly thin and covered in whale lice, displaying signs of poor health and drawing the attention of the photographers,” said the Pacific Whale Foundation on their website. “During the encounter, a second whale engaged in an unexpected behavior—repeatedly approaching the first whale, using its pectoral fins to hold the injured whale in place, and initiating shallow, brief penetrations.”
The whales in question reportedly circled the photographers’ boat for a while, giving them ample opportunity to take their NSFWW (not suitable for whale workplace) photos. Scientists with the Pacific Whale Foundation hypothesized that since one of the whales seemed to be having health issues, this may have contributed to the behavior for whatever reason.
“The two whales circled the boat numerous times, allowing Krannichfeld and Romano the opportunity to carefully document the event by holding their cameras over the side of the stationary vessel (note: it is illegal to swim with or approach humpback whales within 100 yards in Hawaii and the vessel remained in neutral as the whales approached),” the Pacific Whale Foundation said. “The health disparity between the two whales adds a layer of complexity to this unique observation. One whale’s poor condition, possibly caused by a ship strike, may have contributed to the observed behavior.”
The sexual encounter between the whales reportedly took place when one of the whales extruded its penis and penetrated the genital opening of the other whale. The penetrations lasted about two minutes at a time, according to the study, and lasted for about a half hour. When the encounter was over, the whale doing the penetrating took off right away (typical) and the sick whale hung out for a few minutes until swimming away as well.
“Upon reviewing the photographs, it was noticed that Whale A had a significant jaw injury, that likely impaired normal feeding behavior,” the study said. “It was also observed that Whale B had its penis extruded throughout the entire encounter and, at times, would penetrate the genital opening of Whale A, using its pectoral fins to hold Whale A.”
The study said that male humpback whale penis extrusions have been documented in the presence of other male humpbacks, but that this is the first time penetration has been documented. It has been previously theorized that the penis extrusions were acts of aggression towards the other males while competing for females during mating season.
Homosexual behavior is not particularly uncommon among members of the animal kingdom. It has been documented in dolphins, orcas, seals, walruses and several of my neighbors’ dogs. An entire book called Biological Exuberance: Animal Homosexuality and Natural Diversity was published about the topic in 1999.
“The world is, indeed, teeming with homosexual, bisexual, and transgendered creatures of every stripe and feather. From the Southeastern Blueberry Bee of the United States to more than 130 different bird species worldwide, the ‘birds and the bees,’ literally are queer,” the book said. “On every continent, animals of the same sex seek each other out and have probably been doing so for millions of years. They court each other, using intricate and beautiful mating dances that are the result of eons of evolution.”
