Researchers working off the coasts of Spain and Portugal have, for the first time, captured drone video of sperm whales colliding head-first, solving a two-century-old anatomical mystery about the function of the massive animal’s head. According to a study published on March 23, 2026, in the journal Marine Mammal Science by lead author Dr. Alec Burslem and a team from the University of St Andrews, the University of the Azores, and the Balearic Islands-based NGO Asociación Tursiops, newly reviewed overhead footage documents three distinct headbutting events among sub-adult sperm whales.
Drone Footage Reveals Sub-Adult Headbutting Behavior
The groundbreaking footage was gathered during routine marine mammal fieldwork between 2020 and 2022 around the Azores and the Balearic Islands. Ordinary boat- or shore-based observation struggles to capture near-surface aquatic behavior cleanly, but deploying uncrewed aerial vehicles directly overhead allowed researchers to document interactions previously only hypothesized. According to reporting on the study, the drones recorded three clear cases where one whale approached another head-on and struck it directly with the front of its skull. On one occasion in the Balearic Islands, a male struck a similar-sized female, while in the Azores, at least one collision coincided with patterned clicking recorded by in-water sensors attached to the research vessel.
Dr. Burslem, who carried out the work at the University of St Andrews and is now based at the University of Hawaii, called the observation genuinely exciting in a statement released by the University of St Andrews. The captured incidents frequently included rolling and open mouths, which are behaviors commonly associated with rough play or social learning.
Did you know?
A sperm whale’s head accounts for roughly 30 to 40 percent of its total body length. Inside this massive structure sits the spermaceti organ, an oil-filled chamber separated by tough connective tissue walls designed to cushion powerful impacts.
Historical Ship Strikes and 19th-Century Whaling Accounts
These newly documented collisions lend concrete credibility to 19th-century open-boat whalers’ reports of whales ramming vessels with enough force to sink them. The most famous historical case involved the whaleship Essex, which was struck twice and sunk by a large bull sperm whale near the Galápagos Islands in 1820. First mate Owen Chase described the terrifying force of the encounter in a contemporaneous report, noting that the whale came down with twice its ordinary speed and immense fury, striking the ship directly with its head. That disaster famously helped inspire Herman Melville’s classic novel, Moby-Dick.
Other historical accounts from the era described similar violent interactions. The whaleship Ann Alexander was rammed and sunk in the South Pacific on August 20, 1851, by a whale its own crew had wounded earlier that day. Similarly, the bark Kathleen was sunk roughly 1,000 miles off Brazil in 1902 in an attack that Captain Thomas H. Jenkins later described in his own written account.
For a long time, these dramatic narratives lacked direct scientific observation. That changed anatomically in 2002, when researchers David Carrier, Stephen Deban, and Jason Otterstrom published a paper titled “The face that sank the Essex” in the Journal of Experimental Biology. They argued that the spermaceti organ and lower chamber, known as the junk, along with fused cervical vertebrae designed to transmit force rather than absorb it in the neck, served as a biological weapon shaped by sexual selection. However, that anatomical hypothesis could not offer direct behavioral confirmation until the recent drone footage captured living whales utilizing the structure.
Unresolved Questions and Future Research Directions
Despite confirming the physical behavior, the new footage introduces a fresh scientific puzzle. The 2002 sexual-selection hypothesis specifically predicted that headbutting would occur among large adult male bulls competing intensely for mates. Yet, all three whales caught headbutting in the Azores and Balearic Islands footage were sub-adults rather than mature bulls.
Scientists are now evaluating several competing explanations for why younger whales engage in this risky behavior. According to marine researchers, possibilities include dominance testing among non-breeding males, developmental rough play, or low-risk practice for high-stakes adult contests.
However, using the head as a weapon carries profound evolutionary risks. The front of a sperm whale’s head houses delicate sound-producing structures in its nasal passages essential for echolocation and communication in deep, dark water. Sustaining damage to the spermaceti organ carries a severe survival cost, making it mysterious why evolution would preserve the behavior. Dr. Burslem and his co-authors emphasize that three documented collisions over three years of fieldwork represent too small a sample to draw definitive conclusions. The team encourages other researchers and drone operators with similar aerial footage to share their findings to help clarify how age, sex, and social context influence the behavior.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why did scientists think sperm whale heads were built to absorb impacts?
According to anatomical studies like the 2002 paper “The face that sank the Essex,” sperm whale heads feature oil-filled chambers cushioned by thick skin, a reinforced junk containing tough connective tissue, and fused neck vertebrae designed to transmit physical force.
What did the new drone footage reveal about sperm whale headbutting?
Published in Marine Mammal Science in March 2026, drone footage captured by Dr. Alec Burslem and colleagues documented sub-adult sperm whales colliding head-on off the Azores and Balearic Islands between 2020 and 2022.
Are mature adult males the only whales that headbutt?
No. While historical theories assumed only large adult bulls fought over mates, the recent drone footage captured sub-adult whales performing head-to-head collisions, opening new debates about social play and dominance testing.
How did historical whaling influence our understanding of sperm whales?
19th-century accounts from sailors aboard ships like the Essex, Ann Alexander, and Kathleen reported whales intentionally ramming and sinking vessels, providing the earliest historical suggestions that sperm whale heads function as physical weapons.
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