Why is mathematical theory used to study whale songs?
Scientists have used the mathematics of information theory to confirm that the songs of humpback whales have a complex syntax containing the elements of language. The songs of the humpback whale are among the most complex in the animal kingdom. Thought to attract females, the song evolves over time.
What is one reason the humpback whale songs?
Since song doesn’t seem to attract females, it is more likely that males are singing to communicate with other males. A popular theory surrounding this idea is that the males might use songs to coordinate their behavior. While singing, a male humpback is advertising his position whether he wants to or not.
Why do humpback whales have unique songs?
Male humpback whales perform these vocalizations often during the mating season, and so it is believed the purpose of songs is to aid mate selection.
How would you describe a whale song?
Whale song has been described as a composition of moans, snores, chirps and cries. They are all below 4 kHz in frequency. Blue and fin whale songs are so low in frequency that parts of them are inaudible to humans. Humpback whales produce the most complex song of the lot.
How far away can the song of a humpback whale be heard?
A whale’s low frequency sounds can travel up to 10,000 miles.
What do humpback whale songs sound like?
They grunt, groan, shriek, and even make a low-toned guttural roar. The sounds humpback whales make are called songs. These often include repeated noises and rhythms and can last for a few minutes in some cases and hours in other situations. However, humpback whale songs get even more fascinating.
Do humpback whale songs contain similar structure and repetition to human songs?
Humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) sing long, complex songs which continually change over time. In certain time periods the songs contain repeating patterns which structurally resemble human rhyming, and which, like human rhyming, tend to occur in highly rhythmical contexts.
How loud is a humpback whale song?
An Acousonde acoustic and movement recording tag deployed on a calf off Maui, Hawaii captured sounds produced by a singing male escort. Root-mean-square received levels ranged from 126 to 158 dB re 1 μPa.
How do humpback whales use sound?
Whales also use their tails and fins to make loud slapping noises on the surface of the water to communicate nonverbally. The sound can be heard for hundreds of meters below the surface and may be a warning sign of aggression or a tool to scare schools of fish together, making them an easier meal.
Do female humpback whales sing?
One of the most enchanting mysteries about humpback whales is their songs. Only the males are known to sing, although both males and females sound certain social calls while they’re feeding, and calves make other calls when they’re near their mothers.
What have scientists learned about the songs humpback whales sing?
A new study is directly contradicting the widely accepted cultural transmission hypothesis suggesting that whales learn their songs from other whales. ‘Our findings indicate that neither cultural transmission nor social learning contributes significantly to how humpback whales change their songs over time.
How are whale songs related to migration?
Stanford researchers find pattern in whale songs that predicts migration. Through the use of two advanced audio recording technologies, a collaboration of Monterey Bay researchers has found that blue whales switch from nighttime to daytime singing when they are starting to migrate.