One of the world’s largest mammals, the humpback whale is an incredible species for many reasons. They may even be the ...

A study published in Scienc on humpback whale songs has provided remarkable insights into the nature of nonhuman animal communication, revealing a striking similarity between whale songs and human ...

“And whale song is a great place to look,” said Inbal Arnon, an expert on language acquisition at Hebrew University and an author of the new study. Humpback whale song recording from 2017.

Current Biology (2011). [3] Convergence and divergence of songs suggests ongoing, but annually variable, mixing of humpback whale populations throughout the North Pacific. Scientific Reports (2019).

How to search for the pattern in humpback whale song, however, wasn’t immediately clear. First, the researchers had to identify the units within the song that would be equivalent to human words.

Humpback whale song presents a compelling parallel to human language, as it is one of the most intricate vocal displays in the animal kingdom and is also passed down through cultural transmission.

Humpback whale song is a striking example of a complex, culturally transmitted behavior, but up to now, there was little evidence it has language-like structure. Human language, which is also ...

Humpback whale song, New Caledonia, 2017 Humpback whale songs can last up to 30 minutes. This short clip of a song includes two themes and a variety of different sound elements.

Humpback whale song is a striking example of a complex, culturally transmitted behavior, but up to now, there was little evidence it has a language-like structure. Human language, which is also ...

Remarkably, whale song is an indicator of forage availability. Further evidence was found in the striking differences between humpback and blue whales during the later years of the study.