Tag: Sperm

Scientists document remarkable sperm whale ‘phonetic alphabet’

By Will Dunham (Reuters) – The various species of whales inhabiting Earth’s oceans employ different types of vocalizations to communicate. Sperm whales, the largest of the toothed whales, communicate using bursts of clicking noises – called codas – sounding a bit like Morse code. A new analysis of years of vocalizations by sperm whales in […]

Sperm whales drop giant poop bombs to save themselves from orca attack

Sperm whales blasted a “big dark bubble” of poop to prevent an impending orca attack off the southern coast of Western Australia. Scientists witnessed the clever defense strategy unfold Tuesday (March 19) during a tourist excursion in Bremer Canyon, a whale-watching hotspot off the coast between Albany and Hopetoun. They described seeing a “cloud of […]