Golden Oldie

When you clean out the attic, you never know what treasures you might find. For scientists at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in Massachusetts, it was a “golden oldie”-the earliest known audio recording of a whale. Scientists can study the recording to learn how whale songs might have changed, and how the ocean soundscape has changed-especially the sounds produced by people.

The sounds of a humpback whale were recorded near Bermuda in March of 1949. Researchers from Woods Hole and the Navy were testing sonar gear and studying ocean sounds. They used a type of dictation machine to record underwater sounds on plastic disks.

At the time, the researchers weren’t sure what they were hearing-they didn’t know about whale sounds. But today, we know that whales make a lot of sound-especially humpbacks. They produce clicks, whistles, and calls. The sounds help them navigate, find prey, and locate other whales. Most of the elaborate sounds come from males. They can “sing” for up to 20 minutes at a time.

In 1949, the oceans were pretty quiet. Today, they’re suffused with the sounds of ships, oil exploration, wind turbines, and other human activities. This “noise pollution” is one of the greatest threats facing the whales. It could injure them, or interfere with their ability to feed or mate. So knowing how ocean sounds have changed over the decades could help us better understand these “talkative” giants and their noisy home.

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