Tag Archive for 'Humpback whale'

Arnon et al. uncovered the same statistical structure in humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) song that is a hallmark of human language. Image credit: Christopher Michel / CC BY 2.0.

Songs of Humpback Whales Show Human Language-Like Statistical Structure

Feb 6, 2025 by News Staff

An international team of researchers has analyzed the groans, moans, whistles, barks, shrieks and squeaks in humpback whale song recordings collected over...

Several animal species use tools for foraging; however, very few manufacture and/or modify those tools. Humpback whales, which manufacture bubble-net tools while foraging, are among these rare species. Using animal-borne tag and unoccupied aerial system technologies, Szabo et al. examine bubble-nets manufactured by solitary humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) in Southeast Alaska while feeding on krill. They demonstrate that the nets consist of internally tangential rings and suggest that whales actively control the number of rings in a net, net size and depth and the horizontal spacing between neighboring bubbles. They argue that whales regulate these net structural elements to increase per-lunge prey intake by, on average, sevenfold. Image credit: Szabo et al., doi: 10.1098/rsos.240328.

Humpback Whales Wield and Manufacture Their Own Tools

Aug 21, 2024 by News Staff

Humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) create the so-called ‘bubble-net tools’ to hunt, but researchers from the University of Hawai’i and the...

The humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae).

SETI Scientists Test Interactive Bioacoustic Playback as Tool for Exploring Non-Human Intelligence

Dec 13, 2023 by News Staff

The Whale-SETI team, which includes researchers from the SETI Institute, University of California Davis and the Alaska Whale Foundation, has been studying...

Humpback whale bubble-net feeding. Image credit: University of Hawai’i at Manoa.

Researchers Capture Stunning Video of Whale Bubble-Net Feeding

Oct 14, 2019 by News Staff

A research team led by University of Hawai’i at Manoa marine biologists has captured whale’s-point-of-view and aerial drone video of humpback whale...

Humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) in the South Bank, Dominican Republic. Image credit: Christopher Michel / CC BY 2.0.

Song Cultures of Humpback Whales Give Insight into Evolutionary Learning

Jul 26, 2017 by News Staff

Culture was once thought to be what distinguishes humans from other animals. However, research by a University of St Andrews-led team of scientists studying...

Arabian Sea Humpback whale photographed in Dhofar, Southern Oman. Image credit: T. Collins / D. MacDonald.

Arabian Sea Humpback Whale Population Genetically Distinct, Isolated for 70,000 Years

Dec 4, 2014 by News Staff

According to a new study published in the journal PLoS ONE, a small, non-migratory population of humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) in the Arabian...

Humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae). Image credit: Marina C. Vinhal / CC BY 2.0.

Scientists Find Three Subspecies of Humpback Whales

May 22, 2014 by News Staff

According to new genetic research reported in the Proceedings of the Royal Society B, populations of humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) in North...

Some Whales Staying in Antarctic Waters Later into Autumn

Aug 1, 2012 by Natali Anderson

According to a team of scientists from the Duke University in Durham, North Carolina, large numbers of humpback whales are remaining in bays along the...