Golden Oldie

0:00Exploring Science in the Sea When you clean out the attic, you never know what treasures you might find. For scientists at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in Massachusetts, it was a golden oldie, the earliest known audio recording of a whale. Scientists can study the recording to learn how whale songs might have changed, and how the ocean's soundscape has changed, especially the sounds produced by people. The sounds of a humpback whale were recorded

0:35near Bermuda in March of 1949. Researchers from Woods Hole in the Navy were testing sonar gear and studying ocean sounds. They used a type of dictation machine to record underwater sounds on plastic discs. At the time, the researchers weren't sure what they were hearing. They didn't know about whale sounds. But today, we know that whales make a lot of sound, especially humpbacks. They produce clicks, whistles, and calls. The sounds help them navigate, find

1:05prey, and locate other whales. Most of the elaborate sounds come from males. They can sing for up to 20 minutes at a time. In 1949, the oceans were pretty quiet. Today, they're suffused with the sounds of ships, oil exploration, wind turbines, and other human activities. This noise pollution is one of the greatest threats facing the whales. It could injure them or interfere with their ability to feed or mate. So knowing how ocean sounds have changed over the decades

1:37could help us better understand these talkative giants and their noisy home. Science in the Sea is a production of the University of Texas Marine Science Institute and is on the web at scienceinthesea.org. I'm Holly Brawley.