Theoretical analysis uncovers consequence-driven behavior in Iberian killer whales, highlighting the need for generalizable action models across animal cognition.
Key Points
Examine why wild Iberian killer whales systematically target vessel rudders and evaluate theoretical frameworks of action in comparative animal cognition.
Applied cognitive action-effect frameworks to documented interactions between Iberian killer whales (Orcinus orca) and sailing vessels since 2020.
Synthesized prevailing explanatory hypotheses, including social play, exploratory behavior, maladaptation, and cultural transmission.
Finds that prevailing interpretations lack explicit action theories, leaving animal cognition frameworks vulnerable to incomplete behavioral explanations.
Proposes that rudder-directed impacts function as deliberate actions organized around anticipating specific physical changes in the immediate environment.