A humpback whale.Photo:Getty
Getty
Scientists have finally cracked the mystery of howwhalesproduce their distinctive, haunting songs underwater.
A groundbreaking new study published this week in the scientific journalNaturereveals that humpbacks and other baleen whales have evolved a “unique laryngeal structure” — or voice box — for sound production. A baleen whale’s larynx differs from other mammals in that it features a long, rigid, cylinder-like U-shape that “allows massive expiratory and inspiratory air flows during surface breathing,” according to the study.
Within the animal’s respiratory tract, evolved nasal and oral plugs protect the airways from water when breathing and feeding. Scientists learned that air sacs evolved to allow the baleen whale to recycle air while creating vocal sounds.
A humpback whale mother and calf.Getty
He and his team created computer models of the whales' voice boxes that simulated certain aspects that could not be measured in the lab. They found that the baleenwhale’s voice box has “a completely novel mechanism that is not described in any other animal,” Elemans told CNN.
“We now figured out how [whales have] been able so successfully to communicate with each other on the water. And this evolved probably like 40 million years ago and has allowed the whales today to be successful,” he explained to the outlet.
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The new study also revealed why the noise that humans make in the ocean is so disruptive and harmful for the large mammals. The whales' laryngeal structures have physiological limits to the frequency range and depth of their songs, making it difficult for them to communicate when there is loud noise in the area from ships.
“Sound is absolutely crucial for their survival, because it’s the only way they can find each other to mate in the ocean,” explained Elemans, perBBC News.
Elemans told CNN he hopes the findings of this new study can help to “mitigate the noise we make” so that whales can better communicate with each other.
“We really have to change the noise we make, the type of noise we make, when we make it, where we make it,” he said.
Ellen Coombs, a Peter Buck Postdoctoral Fellow at the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History who was not involved in the study, noted in a statement to CNN that human-made noise presents a considerable “challenge” to whales.
Elemans told CNN that the study “just started to scratch the surface” and only involved young animals. Therefore, he and his team hope to study adult whales next to delve deeper and further their findings.
source: people.com
