Discover
/
Article

Bioacoustics researcher reports on whales’ unique ability to compose songs

AUG 06, 2015
Physics Today

NPR : In an interview, bioacoustics researcher Katy Payne discusses the extensive investigation into humpback whale song that she and her husband Roger Payne conducted starting in the 1960s. Their interest was sparked during a trip to Bermuda in 1964, when they met engineer Frank Watlington, who shared whale recordings he had made using a hydrophone, or underwater microphone. From spectrograms she made of the recordings, Katy Payne, who also majored in music, was able to discern distinct melodies and rhythms. She likens the animals’ song to jazz in that each male “riffs” on the same tune but also introduces innovations. The NPR interview online includes samples of whale song as well as a duet between Katy and one of the whales.

Related content
/
Article
The finding that the Saturnian moon may host layers of icy slush instead of a global ocean could change how planetary scientists think about other icy moons as well.
/
Article
/
Article
After a foray into international health and social welfare, she returned to the physical sciences. She is currently at the Moore Foundation.
/
Article
Modeling the shapes of tree branches, neurons, and blood vessels is a thorny problem, but researchers have just discovered that much of the math has already been done.

Get PT in your inbox

pt_newsletter_card_blue.png
PT The Week in Physics

A collection of PT's content from the previous week delivered every Monday.

pt_newsletter_card_darkblue.png
PT New Issue Alert

Be notified about the new issue with links to highlights and the full TOC.

pt_newsletter_card_pink.png
PT Webinars & White Papers

The latest webinars, white papers and other informational resources.

By signing up you agree to allow AIP to send you email newsletters. You further agree to our privacy policy and terms of service.