Abstract
Aggregations of predators on food patches have been documented for both terrestrial and marine animals. Here, we documented for the first time, and investigated, non-predatory aggregations occurring between humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) and killer whales (Orcinus orca) while feeding on wintering Norwegian spring spawning herring (Clupea harengus) in Andfjord, northern Norway. Observational data were collected during 109 opportunistic surveys through three seasons 2013–2016. Killer whales were observed feeding on 59 occasions, with one to three humpback whales involved in 47 of these feeding events (79.7%), and there was an increased probability of finding feeding humpback whales when feeding killer whales also were observed. With killer whales identified as the initiating species in 94.4% of the feeding aggregations for which the first species was known, and with humpback whales joining and feeding on the fish ball afterwards, we suggest that humpback whales may benefit more from these aggregations than the opposite.
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