Study Finds Ship Noise Disrupts Sperm Whale Communication in Caribbean Waters

A recent study by researchers at the University of Haifa reveals that noise from ships significantly alters the communication patterns of sperm whales, known as "codas," in the Caribbean Sea near Dominica. These whales use structured sequences of clicks to socially interact, navigate, and locate food. The research, published in Ecological Informatics, analyzed 1,398 codas recorded from 15 sperm whales using attached recording tags that captured both whale sounds and nearby ship noise.

The study combined acoustic data with Automatic Identification System (AIS) ship tracking information to determine when vessels were close to the whales. Results showed that in the presence of ship noise, sperm whales produced shorter codas with altered timing and acoustic features. Some clicks within sequences were acoustically mismatched compared to others, indicating disrupted communication. Machine learning models based solely on whale vocalizations could predict ship presence with over 90% accuracy, correlating prediction accuracy with noise intensity.

Professor Roy Diamant, who led the study, emphasized that this is the first systematic evidence linking ship noise to changes not just in the quantity but in the structure of sperm whale communication. He noted that these findings align with broader research on the harmful effects of anthropogenic noise on marine life, including fish, sea turtles, and crustaceans. Diamant highlighted Israel's potential role in advancing marine regulations to reduce such noise pollution, especially around marine nature reserves.