e360 digest

01 Aug 2012: New Whale Recordings Hint
at Bowhead Recovery off Greenland

A wide array of whale songs recorded in the icy waters off Greenland indicates that populations of the endangered bowhead whale, nearly hunted to extinction in the last two centuries, may be experiencing a rebound. After collecting 2,144 hours of audio recordings in the waters between Greenland and

A Defender of World’s Whales
Sees Only a Tenuous Recovery

Biologist Roger Payne played a key role in helping end the wholesale slaughter of whales. In an interview with Yale e360, he discusses the mysteries of these legendary marine mammals and the threats they continue to face.
READ THE e360 REPORT

Norway from September 2008 to July 2009, an international team of scientists detected a surprising variety and duration of whale songs. Not only did the recordings yield roughly five months of near-continuous singing, but they revealed more than 60 unique “songs,” most likely belonging to individual whales, according a study published in the journal Endangered Species Research. Since scientists believe male bowheads sing during mating season — and because most whale species are believed to sing the same song throughout their lives — the findings could suggest that bowhead populations in that area exceed 100 whales, far more than previously believed; only 40 bowhead sightings have been reported in that area since the 1970s, according to the researchers. The results could also reveal that individual bowheads sing a variety of songs during one season, which would make them unique among whale species.
Listen to the bowheads’ song

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