Spanning more octaves than a piano, humpback whales sing powerfully into the vast ocean. These songs are beautifully complex, weaving phrases and themes into masterful compositions. Blue and fin whales richly fill out a bass section with their own unique versions of song. Now, a six-year study has revealed that their song responds to changes in their ecosystem. The study took place in whale foraging habitat in the eastern North Pacific, off the coast of California. From this biologically rich area, the whales migrate long distances each year to breeding habitats at lower latitudes. Foraging conditions and prey availability change dramatically from year to year, and the whales were observed to sing more as foraging conditions improved. These findings provided the first indications that the singing behaviour of whales may be closely related to food availability.
Read an article about the research on The Conversation, and read the full research paper on PLOS One.