With the sperm whales of the mid-Atlantic Ridge

Wade Hughes · Issue 55, Jul/Aug 2010 · pp. 39–44

This pod of sperm whales (Physeter macrocephalus) swims slowly in mirror smooth seas in mid Atlantic, off the coast of Pico in the Azores. In their midst, two newborn calves. When they see me in the water, waiting in the hope of a glimpse of the calves, they do not deviate from their chosen course. We have observed the pod from the boat for some time. The adults are taking turns to shepherd the calves and to dive for food in the abyssal deeps, around 1000 metres below. On occasions, all the adults dive and the calves are left to face the uncertainties of their strange new world alone. I swim with this pod a number of times, each time entering the water well away from the animals and waiting for them to approach. The underwater visibility is well over 30 metres, but sprays of audible clicks from the adult whales’ echolocation confirms that they have detected me long before they come into …