There are various types of whales which are organisms that live in Earth’s oceans and use different types of vocalizations to communicate. The largest of the sperm whales is a toothed whale that communicates using bursts of clicks called codas, similar to Morse code.
A new analysis of years of vocalizations by sperm whales in the eastern Caribbean reveals that their communication system is more sophisticated than previously known, showing a complex internal structure full of ‘phonetic scripts’. Researchers have identified similarities with other animal communication systems and even aspects of human language.
Like all marine mammals, sperm whales are extremely social animals and their calls are an integral part of their communication. The new research provides a more complete understanding of how these whales communicate.
“This study shows that the expressiveness of sperm whale calls is much greater than previously thought,” said Pratyusha Sharma, lead author of the study published in the journal Nature Communications.
Sperm whales can reach lengths of around 18 meters and have the largest brains of any animal. They dive deep to feed on giant squid and other prey.
The researchers are part of the Project CETI (Cetacean Translation Initiative) machine learning team. They used traditional statistical analysis and artificial intelligence to examine the sounds of approximately 60 whales recorded by the Dominican Sperm Whale Project. This research program has assembled a large dataset on this species.
The researchers found that changes in the number, rhythm, and tempo of the clicks produced different types of codas. Among other things, whales changed the length of their codas and sometimes added extra click sounds at the end, similar to suffixes in human languages.
For humans, there are two levels of combination in communication. Similarly, sperm whales also use characteristic two-level combinations to form codas and sequence them as they communicate.
“Every communication system is tailored to the environment and animal society in which it evolved,” Sharma added.
The communication system used by sperm whales is different from that of humpback whales, as well as other animals like whales, which use various sounds like whistles, chirps, and songs.
“Human language is unique in many ways, but as science advances, I suspect we’ll find many patterns, structures, and aspects thought to be unique to humans in other species, including whales,” said Shane Gero, a study co-author.
If scientists can decipher the meaning of what sperm whales are “saying,” should people communicate with them? This is a question that requires further research and understanding.
“At the same time, we’ll be able to learn more about the information encoded in the vocalizations we hear, and understand the behavioral context in which they occur,” added Jacob Andreas, a co-author of the study.
Source: www.nbcnews.com
