Whale Caught on Video Gives Rare Clues about Hunting Strategy, Sound Production
In a paper published in the May issue of the Journal of the Acoustical Society of America, Delphine Mathias and Aaron Thode of MPL for the first time describe a direct comparison between sperm whale clicking sounds and the physical features of the animal's head, including its size and internal organ structure.
The roots of the unique study began years ago in Alaska, after sperm whales developed the ability to steal black cod off "longlines," deep-sea fishing gear that features a main fishing line draped across the ocean and fastened with shorter lines bearing baited hooks. Frustrated black cod fishermen began to realize that their longline fishing boats were attracting groups of whales-which typically forage alone- to their longlines, somehow alerting the animals like a dinner bell.
To help fishermen and scientists better understand this behavior, Scripps researchers deployed acoustic recorders on longlines in 2004 off Sitka, Alaska, as part of the Southeast Alaska Sperm Whale Avoidance Project (SEASWAP). The results helped identify the sounds that attract whales to the fishing vessels. Encouraged, the researchers added video cameras to the fishing gear in 2006, which led to some unexpected results.
