Humans have long been captivated by the haunting and melodic songs of whales, singing out from their oceanic world. From communication to navigation, whale songs are a vital part of life in the deep.

But why do whales sing? “The short answer is, we don’t know,” says Alison Stimpert, a bioacoustician at Moss Landing Marine Laboratories in California. Humpback songs are only performed by males and ...

A new first-of-its kind study found the marine mammals vocalized less after a marine heat wave decimated their prey, making whale songs a barometer of the effects of climate change on ocean ...

Baleen whales communicate with each other across the expanse of the ocean by singing. Some songs — like those of gray whales and humpbacks — are elaborate and higher-pitched. These songs are ...

Whales sing loud enough that their songs travel through the ocean, but the mechanics behind it have always been a mystery. Scientists now think they have an idea, and it’s something not seen in ...

“We can use sounds like whale song as a metric for understanding biodiversity and ocean health, and if all those sounds go away, it kind of lets us know that a change might be happening in a ...

“We can use sounds like whale song as a metric for understanding biodiversity and ocean health, and if all those sounds go away, it kind of lets us know that a change might be happening in a ...