The Long-finned Pilot Whale is a large, bulbous-headed dolphin prone to mass strandings, during which entire pods follow distressed individuals onto beaches—a behavior researchers are still working to understand. Females live well into their 50s and continue to support adult sons long after menopause, one of the few non-human species where older females serve as a social resource in this way. Pilot whale groups are exceptionally cohesive and vocally complex.
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