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Maternal Transmission

All articles tagged with #maternal transmission

Rare dolphin shelling captured in Australia suggests mother-to-calf teaching
science5 days ago

Rare dolphin shelling captured in Australia suggests mother-to-calf teaching

Researchers documented an extremely rare ‘shelling’ behavior in bottlenose dolphins off Queensland, Australia, where shells are used as tools to trap fish. The observation included both an adult female and her calf, suggesting the calf learned the behavior from its mother and providing potential evidence of maternal social transmission. The finding also underscores the importance of traditional wildlife photography for documenting new scientific insights.

Mother–calf dolphins reveal rare shell-hunt behavior on Australia’s east coast
science7 days ago

Mother–calf dolphins reveal rare shell-hunt behavior on Australia’s east coast

Researchers photographed bottlenose dolphins off Queensland’s Great Sandy Marine Park using shells as tools to trap fish, including an adult female and its calf. The footage, captured between July and October 2025, appears to be the first official recording on Australia’s east coast and suggests maternal social transmission of this tool-use behavior rather than learning from peers.

Dolphins Use Seashells to Catch Fish, Possible Maternal Teaching
science12 days ago

Dolphins Use Seashells to Catch Fish, Possible Maternal Teaching

Researchers off Hervey Bay, Queensland, captured the first east‑coast footage of bottlenose dolphins using seashells to catch fish—a hunting method called shelling—plus an adult female and calf observed together, suggesting maternal transmission. Recorded in October 2025 and published in Marine Mammal Science, the finding complements earlier evidence from Western Australia and shows cross‑regional tool use in dolphins.