TY - JOUR
TI - Whale-call response to masking boat noise
AU - Foote, A
AU - Osborne, R
AU - Hoelzel, R
T2 - Nature
AB - Background noise can interfere with the detection and discrimination of crucial signals among members of a species. Here we investigate the vocal behaviour in the presence and absence of whale-watcher boat traffic of three social groups (pods) of killer whales (Orcinus orca) living in the nearshore waters of Washington state. We find longer call durations in the presence of boats for all three pods, but only in recent recordings made following a period of increasing boat traffic. This result indicates that these whales adjust their behaviour to compensate for anthropogenic noise once it reaches a threshold level.
DA - 2004/04//
PY - 2004
VL - 428
SP - 910
UR - https://www.nature.com/articles/428910a
DO - 10.1038/428910a
LA - English
KW - Noise
KW - Marine Mammals
KW - Cetaceans
ER -