There are about 800,000 sperm whales in the world, but the 250 or so that live off the Caribbean coast of Dominica are unique. They have their own dialect and social structures, and, while most sperm whales migrate, whales in Dominica tend to stay put, hanging out near the shores of the island nation year-round. “There’s no real good explanation based on ecology or movement,” says biologist Shane Gero, who has studied the Dominican population for nearly 20 years as part of the Dominica Sperm Whale Project (DSWP). “It really…
