Ever Heard a Whale Sing? Scientists Record 'Song' of Rare North Pacific Right Whale

According to NOAA Fisheries marine biologist Jessica Crance, this is the first time right whales have been detected using patterned phrases that sounds like a song.

Rare right whale (Photo Credits: Pixabay)

Scientists have captured the singing of a rare right whale for the first time. Researchers with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) in the United States recorded repeated patterns using moored acoustic recorders. Researchers detected four distinct songs over a period of eight years at five locations in the southeast Bering Sea. The singing of whales has been recorded multiple times in the past. Male Humpback Whales' Singing Pattern Changes, Thanks to Shipping Noise.

The sound of humpback, bowhead and whales singing have been recorded multiple times in the past. Right whales have been heard making individual sounds. According to NOAA Fisheries marine biologist Jessica Crance, this is the first time right whales have been detected using patterned phrases that sounds like a song. Crance spoke to southern right whale and North Atlantic right whale experts to assure that singing of these mammals have not been documented before. This Video of Toadfish Singing a Song to Impress a Lover Will Leave You Surprised.

Due to whaling and similar threats, 13 great whales have been listed as endangered. Only 30 of these rare whales are left. In 2010, NOAA Fisheries researchers first noted weird sound patterns which they could not identify. AFP quoted Crance as saying, We thought it might be a right whale, but we didn't get visual confirmation."

While the team has been trying to find out that the sounds were actually coming from the scarce right whales, for seven years they couldn't find anything credible enough. The confirmation came in 2017 after Crance and her team heard one of the whale songs. Right whales make an array of sounds including one that sounds like gunshot other than upcalls, downcalls, moans, screams and warbles.

In a paper for the Journal of the Acoustical Society of America, Crance writes that for sound to be the song it has to contain rhythmically patterned series of units produced in a consistent manner to form patterns that can be understood.

Crance said, "It could be that there are so few of them left, they feel the need to call more frequently or sing. This is entirely speculation, but perhaps they're copying humpbacks, a little bit. Our right whales are frequently seen associating with humpbacks." North Pacific right whale summers in the southeastern Bering Sea and Gulf of Alaska and their range remains unknown. Only recently scientists have been able to find them.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jun 20, 2019 12:23 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).

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