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  • An enormous mature bull sperm whale (Physeter macrocephalus) approaching 20m in length. This imposing bull approached to within two to three meters from me. At this proximity, the whale clanged loudly, which caused my ear canals to clear, as if I had executed a Valsalva maneuver. The mature male was associated with a group of females, at one point surfacing adjacent to a mature female. The male easily exceeded 1.5x the length of the female. Note the substantial scarring on the whale’s forehead, likely indicative of interactions with other males.
    enormous-mature-bull-sperm-whale-sri...tif
  • Mature sperm whale bull (Physeter macrocephalus) in the foreground with adult females visible in the background. This male was 15-16m in length. Though he approached females in the vicinity continually and persistently, the females did not exhibit interest. On this one occasion, he was associated with seven females, six of which are visible here, though the females left him shortly after this photograph was taken. Note the parallel scars on the male’s head, indiciative of encounters with other mature males.
    sperm-whale-mature-bull-with-females...tif
  • A mature bull sperm whale, which was significantly larger in size than the females and juveniles, perhaps approaching 20 meters in length. As soon as the large male announced its arrival in the area with a series of loud clangs, the other whales swam toward it to socialize. Mature males spend more time in higher latitudes in the northern hemisphere and lower latitudes in the southern, so in-water encounters with them are relatively infrequent.
    large-mature-bull-sperm-whale-with-j...tif
  • Silhouette of a mature bull Australian sea lion
    silhouette-australian-sea-lion-shall...tif
  • A pair of endangered Australian sea lions (Neophoca cinerea) sitting on the beach at Carnac Island in Western Australia. These two sea lions are males, as are all the individuals that visit this island. It is the only sea lion colony in the world that comprises only males.
    endangered-australian-sea-lions-neop...tif
  • Mature bull killer whale (Orcinus orca) in the cold, dark winter waters of northern Norway. Note the rake marks on the orca’s body, perhaps from encounters with other male orcas.
    mature-male-killer-whale-orcinus-orc...tif
  • A group of twenty three sperm whales (Physeter macrocephalus) traveling together. These whales (all females and immature individuals) were part of a much larger aggregation or superpod that I estimated to comprise around 100 individuals. The reason for such a large gathering is unclear, though it may have something to do with reproduction. Some time after this encounter, I came across another large group in the same area, which included a mature bull. Mature male sperm whales spend most of their time in colder waters, visiting tropical and temperate waters for the purpose of mating. The cloud of dark substance in the foreground is defecation from one of the whales, something which sperm whales seem to do often when they are at the surface.
    superpod-sperm-whales-sri-lanka-miri...tif
  • This is what it looks like inside a massive group of spawning Lutjanus bohar snappers. The water is milky blue from the simultaneous release of eggs and sperm by hundreds of fish in this group, which were part of an enormous gathering of thousands of fish. The visibility quickly dropped to nearly zero, with fish swimming in every direction. There were bull sharks (Carcharhinus leucas), grey reef sharks (Carcharhinus amblyrhynchos) and blackfin sharks (Carcharhinus limbatus) charging through the groups of spawning fish. Photographed in Palau.
    lutjanus-bohar-snapper-spawning-aggr...tif
  • A pair of sea lions crashed out on a bed of seagrass after a session of play fighting and roughhousing. The one looking at the camera is a juvenile. The individual lying down is a mature bull. Note the scars on the smaller sea lion's head, which may be a result of tussling with other sea lions.
    australian-sea-lions-resting-on-seag...tif
  • A bull Australian sea lion (Neophoca cinerea) chiling out in a bed of seagrass at Carnac Island in Western Australia
    australian-sea-lion-carnac-island-ne...tif
  • This is a close-up view of the forehead of a friendly juvenile male sperm whale named Scar. This whale actively sought out contact with boats and people, perhaps due to help and compassion he received from local residents in Dominica when he was injured as a calf. When the mood struck him, Scar would approach at high speed in the water and run right into you because he wanted to be petted. He seemed to relish human touch, closing his eyes and rolling around, much like a playful puppy would.  Scar was about ten years old when I took this photograph, which meant he was almost mature and was due to head north to higher latitudes to feed and mature into a bull. At 50% or greater magnification, you can see small pieces of squid stuck in his mouth, about half-way down the jawline. Andrew Armour, who introduced me to Scar, often picked the scraps out of Scar's mouth. By all accounts, Scar is an extraordinary whale.
    scar-the-friendly-sperm-whale-forehe...tif
  • Large adult male Australian sea lion swimming through shallow waters with a white sand bottom at Carnac Island in Western Australia
    rear-view-of-bull-australian-sea-lio...tif
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Tony Wu Underwater Photography

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