Overview
- A GoPro video taken off Palm Beach Reef in July 2025 and described in a paper published Sept. 16, 2026, shows a female humpback and an escort staying at the site of a stillborn calf.
- During at least 90 minutes of observation and according to later public sightings possibly days, the mother repeatedly dove to the seafloor, rested beside the calf, touched it with her head and pectoral fin, and appeared to hold eye contact.
- The footage was captured opportunistically by Sea World Foundation rescue boat captain Andrew Mulville after members of the public reported unusual whale behaviour, highlighting the role of small cameras and citizen sightings in documenting rare events.
- Study authors label the behaviour 'post-mortem attentive behaviour' and say it may reflect a grief-like response, but they stress behaviour alone cannot prove subjective grief and offer alternatives such as confusion or instinctive caregiving.
- Researchers note newborn humpbacks often sink because they lack blubber to float and therefore are hard to observe, and they call for systematic, repeatable monitoring of neonatal mortality to clarify the cognitive, emotional and conservation implications.