Listen to the secret coda of whales
Scientists from the Cetacean Translation Initiative – or CETI – have discovered intricacies in sperm whale vocalisations never before observed, revealing structures similar to those found in human language.
The rhythmic sequences of clicks sperm whales use to communicate are known as codas – and it was previously thought that they had just 21 distinct coda types. However, from almost 9,000 recordings the researchers identified 156 codas – as well as the basic building blocks of these codas which they describe as a 'sperm whale phonetic alphabet'. In this clip, you can listen to the underwater recordings.
Video by Katherine Latham and Anna Bressanin
