Moment sperm whales work together to hold newborn calf above the water

This is the incredible moment sperm whales worked together to hold a newborn calf above the water until it was able to swim. 

The astonishing footage from 2023 shows two female animals from separate families working together to lift the baby free of the waves after another gives birth. 

The rare clip of the sperm whale birth process displays a level of coordination that is very uncommon in the animal kingdom, especially among non-primates. 

It was captured off the coast of Caribbean island of Dominica, where researchers were studying whale communication from a boat. 

David Gruber, who co-authored a study of the moment with Cetacean Translation Initiative, or Project CETI, said: 'This was just really a special event.' 

The video offered scientists a valuable window into the behaviour of these large, elusive mammals. 

Experts are keen to study how whales cooperate and socialise in the wild - but it is challenging when the animals spend most of their time underwater. 

There are only a handful of sperm whale birth records from the past 60 years and all are anecdotal accounts or from whaling boats. 

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This incredible clip was filmed after the group of researchers saw eleven whales, most of them female, surface with their heads facing each other.  

They began to thrash and dive above and below the water, which saw the scientists immediately take out drones and microphones to capture the event.  

It turned out to be the start of one animal going into labour. The full delivery went on to take around 30 minutes.

For hours afterward, pairs of whales held the baby above the water until it was able to swim.

After observing the birth, the scientists created software to analyse exactly what was going on. 

They chronicled the sights and sounds in two studies published on Thursday in the journals Scientific Reports and Science.

What struck the experts was how many mother, sister and daughter whales united to support the new calf, even if they were not related to it. 

Sperm whales live in close-knit, female-led societies - and the new observations show those dynamics persist in the animals' most significant, vulnerable moments.

Shane Gero, who co-authored the Project CETI study with Mr Gruber, said: 'It's amazing to think about how, when faced with this impossible challenge, these animals come together to succeed.'

Scientists also noticed the whales made different sounds during key moments of the birth, including slower, longer sets of clicks. 

These noises could have aided with communication, helping the animals sync up for the birthing effort.

The findings unearth a trove of questions, about how the group of whales formed - and how individual animals knew to join it. 

But the new findings can at least partially clue us into the whales' hidden conversations.