Stephanie H. Stack

Stephanie H. Stack

she/her

Marine mammalogist | Humpback whale behavioural ecology & energetics | UAV photogrammetry | Conservation science

Behaviour and natural history

Overview

Understanding how to protect a species begins with understanding how it lives. Despite decades of research, much of the behaviour and ecology of whales and dolphins remains poorly described. My research documents these behaviours through long-term field studies, revealing how animals move, socialise, reproduce, and use important habitats. By building this foundation of natural history, the work provides context for ecological research and informs conservation and management.

Selected outputs

  • McGovern, Barber-Meyer, Clegeur, Rothe & Stack (submitted) — Identifying important habitat for conservation and management of two sympatric dolphin species within a marine park in Queensland, Australia.
  • Castro*, Stack* et al. (2026) — First evidence of bidirectional exchange between distant humpback whale breeding populations in eastern Australia and Brazil. Royal Society Open Science. DOI: 10.1098/rsos.260251 (*joint first authors)
  • McGovern, Machernis, McCordic, Olson, Sullivan, Barber-Meyer, Currie & Stack (2025) — Prevalence, composition, and behaviour of humpback whale groups containing multiple mother-calf pairs in East Australia. Aquatic Mammals. DOI: 10.1578/AM.51.2.2025.163
  • Cartwright, Lyman, Venema, Currie, Stack et al. (2025) — Tending the sick: observations of epimeletic behavior in humpback whales towards conspecifics during entanglement events. PLOS ONE. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0321284
  • Evans, van Aswegen, Feinberg, Currie, Stack, Szabo & Bejder (2025) — Aerial-identification improves re-sight rates and supports long-term monitoring of humpback whales. Marine Mammal Science. DOI: 10.1111/mms.70078
  • Stack, Krannichfeld & Romano (2024) — An observation of sexual behavior between two male humpback whales. Marine Mammal Science. DOI: 10.1111/MMS.13119
  • Castro Ayala, Garcia-Cegarra, Uceda-Vega, Aguilar, Kelez, Buchan, Felix, Stack & Van Waerebeek (2024) — New northernmost distribution records of the Eastern South Pacific southern right whale. PLOS ONE. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0312528
  • Stack, Currie, McCordic, Machernis & Olson (2019) — Distribution patterns of east Australian humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) in Hervey Bay, Queensland: a historical perspective. Australian Mammalogy. DOI: 10.1071/AM18029

Media coverage

  • First evidence of bidirectional exchange between distant humpback whale breeding populations in eastern Australia and Brazil (2026) — covered by the Washington Post, BBC, The Guardian, the Los Angeles Times, and People. Altmetric score above 1200, placing it in the top 5% of all research outputs.
  • An observation of sexual behavior between two male humpback whales (2024) — covered by National Geographic, the Washington Post, NBC News, and People. Altmetric score above 1500, placing it in the top 5% of all research outputs.