Last year, orcas sashayed into the world of fashion with dead salmon hats. Now, dolphins are wowing us with flamboyant sea sponge fascinators.
Images of the odd invertebrate-wearing behavior were captured by scientists from the Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions (DBCA) off the coast of Burrup Peninsula in Western Australia.
“Male humpback dolphins wear sea sponges on their heads as offerings to ‘woo’ females, a bit like offering a bunch of flowers,” DBCA explains on their Instagram post.
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Australian humpback dolphins (Sousa sahulensis) were observed wearing the head sponges as they cruised through Flying Foam Passage in the Dampier Archipelago.
“[The sponges are] different shapes and sizes, different colours, but it all seems to be in this one particular area [of Western Australia],” Raudino told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.
According to Raudino, this behavior has only been observed in a few spots along this part of the Western Australia coast: in the Dampier Archipelago, in Exmouth Gulf to the south, and off the Kimberley coast further north.
While bottlenose dolphins have been seen using sponges to protect their faces while digging in the seabed for food, DBCA researchers aren’t aware of the unique ‘sponge fashion’ being reported elsewhere in the world.
Australian humpback dolphins were only recognized as a distinct species in 2014. They are classed as ‘vulnerable’, with fewer than 10,000 adults estimated to exist.
“In Western Australia, and particularly the Pilbara region, habitat loss and degradation are likely the major threats to dolphins using coastal waters and are associated with the construction of processing facilities and export infrastructure for petroleum and mineral industries,” a 2023 study led by Raudino noted.
So anything that can pique their mating interest should definitely be encouraged, no matter how odd it might seem to the rest of us.
