7 Feb 2025

There's a reason whale song strikes a chord with humans

From Afternoons, 1:25 pm on 7 February 2025

Most of us are familiar with whale song, but new research suggests that the structure of the song - the individual parts that make up the whole - has similarities to human language.

While we don't know what the songs mean, the distinct patterns mirror the way that humans communicate.

Dr Emma Carroll is a marine biologist from the University of Auckland and she joins Jesse today. 

Humpback whale

Humpback whale Photo: Supplied/Operation Cetaces