Sperm whales form clans with distinct cultures and dialects

Sperm whales form clans with distinct cultures and dialects



 (Gabriel Barathieu on Wikimedia Commons/CC BY-SA 2.0)

Written by
Kelsey Kennedy

Obsession
The Sea
July 02, 2016

The evolution of language helped humans develop culture and cooperation with others who helped us survive. We aren’t alone. Sperm whales form clans with distinct dialects and cultures in the Pacific and the Atlantic, and a new study introduces another clan in the Caribbean Sea.

The study, published in the journal Royal Society Open Science, profiles sperm whale clans in the Caribbean Sea and how their dialects keep whale cultures separate. Shane Gero, an author of the study, says this new clan means “there are multicultural areas in the Atlantic.”

Whale dialects are made up of a series of distinct click patterns called codas, and researchers can identify a clan by their click vocabulary using recording equipment. Within each vocal clan are social groups of female whales and calves that spend most of their time together. Males spend the majority of their time roaming the open ocean, but still communicate with members of their vocal clan when they encounter other whales.

Each clan has a signature set of clicks that announce their affiliation, and this signature is taught to each generation. Whale calves take two to three years to learn the family dialect, and they even babble, much like humans do in infancy.

More:
http://qz.com/718116/sperm-whales-form-clans-with-distinct-cultures-and-dialects/