Whale songs
The intrigue of whale songs is no doubt due to the fact they lay deep underwater and beyond human hearing for so long. Ever since Roger Payne released an entire record of humpack whale songs in 1970, the eerie calls of the deep have a passing familiarity in popular culture. The plot of the film Star Trek IV revolves around humpback whale song communicating to an extraterrestrial.
Despite the human desire to associate meanings and anthropomorphic tendencies, the whale vocalizations are not unlike vocalizations made by creatures on land such as lions, crocodiles, and cows. There is not a consensus yet for the reason the whales sing so long, but theories range from navigation to mating rituals. The fact that light is poor in the deep sea and sound travels faster and further underwater make the seeming anomaly of the largest mammals on earth singing a little less awesome. The whales evolved a different use of senses than our species can appreciate. Applying New Age feelings to those senses makes as much sense as sea creatures worshiping the human inner ear sense of balance.
Despite the human desire to associate meanings and anthropomorphic tendencies, the whale vocalizations are not unlike vocalizations made by creatures on land such as lions, crocodiles, and cows. There is not a consensus yet for the reason the whales sing so long, but theories range from navigation to mating rituals. The fact that light is poor in the deep sea and sound travels faster and further underwater make the seeming anomaly of the largest mammals on earth singing a little less awesome. The whales evolved a different use of senses than our species can appreciate. Applying New Age feelings to those senses makes as much sense as sea creatures worshiping the human inner ear sense of balance.
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