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Whale speak
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St. Andrews, Scotland: Research carried out at St. Andrews University in Scotland and the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in Massachusetts have come up with a much fuller picture of how sperm whales use echolocation while foraging
Like other marine mammals, sperm whales use echolocation when they are diving for food. These sonar signals take two forms: "clicks," short-duration noises at intervals of up to two seconds, and "creaks," continuous clicking that sounds more like a buzz.
While scientists have long suspected that the whales use both sounds to locate sources of squid or other food, little has been known about the details. It's not easy to find out what an animal is doing 2,000 feet or more below the surface.
For more information, please visit:
www.nytimes.com/2004/11/23/science/23obse.html
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