Main points
- The study found that sperm whale communication has a complex structure similar to human language, with elements resembling vowels.
- The CETI project is working to recognize up to 20 different “utterances” of sperm whales to better understand their language over the next five years.
Sperm whale language appears to be similar to human language – new study / Unsplash / Todd Cravens
The study showed that sperm whales' communication has a complex structure similar to human language. Scientists found that their sounds contain elements that resemble vowels and even an “alphabet.”
Sperm whales, despite their vast evolutionary distance from humans , display an unexpectedly complex system of communication. A new study has shown that their vocal signals have much in common with human language – particularly in the structure and organization of sounds. This is reported by The Guardian .
How does sperm whale language resemble human language?
These sea giants communicate using short clicks known as “codes.” Analysis has shown that they can change the sound by changing the length of the signal or changing the pitch – similar to how vowels are formed in human languages. Such features resemble the structure of languages such as Chinese, Latin and Slovenian.
Researchers have found that sperm whale communication has features similar to the phonetics and phonology of human speech, suggesting that complex language systems may have arisen independently in different species.
The work was part of a project called Project CETI, which studies the behavior of sperm whales off the coast of Dominica. The goal of the project is to understand what these animals are “saying.”
A few decades ago, scientists weren't even sure that sperm whales even used sounds to communicate. Today, thanks to modern technology and artificial intelligence, researchers can analyze their signals with high precision.
According to Project CETI founder David Gruber, this discovery demonstrates that humans are not the only creatures with complex social and cultural behavior. Sperm whales can pass information between generations for millions of years.
According to ScienceAlert , studying these animals is complicated by their lifestyle. They can dive underwater for up to 50 minutes in search of food, and only surface for a short time. It is during this time that they actively “communicate”, staying close to each other.
Although to the human ear these sounds resemble Morse code , detailed analysis revealed complex patterns. Scientists were even able to detect analogies to vowel changes – as in human speech, when the sound changes depending on the articulation.
Linguist Gašper Beguš noted that the level of complexity of sperm whale language exceeds that of many other species studied, including parrots and elephants. This once again emphasizes that despite their differences in habitat, humans and these animals have much in common.
Scientists are also paying attention to the social behavior of sperm whales. They live in groups, help care for their offspring, and even participate in joint childbirth.
According to ecologist Mauricio Cantor , sperm whale communication has several levels of structure that were previously not fully understood. This discovery allows us to take a deeper look at their “language.”
In the future, scientists hope to not only decipher individual signals, but also learn to partially understand these messages. Project CETI plans to recognize at least 20 different “expressions” related to behavior – such as diving or sleeping – over the next five years.
Full-fledged “communication” with sperm whales remains a distant prospect. However, researchers believe that it no longer looks like science fiction, but only a matter of time, technology and resources.