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Science 8 May 1981:
Vol. 212. no. 4495, pp. 676 - 678
DOI: 10.1126/science.212.4495.676
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Articles

Dolphin Vocalization Mechanisms

R. STUART MACKAY 1 and H. M. LIAW 1

1 Department of Biology, Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts 02215

Although humans have difficulty whistling when in a habitat that is more than 20 meters underwater, dolphins can make certain sounds at great depths through a related mechanism. Other dolphin sounds, such as clicks and complex buzzes, are produced by vibrations of the tissue of the nasal plugs, apparently without the use of the larynx; in these instances, the air sacs act as reservoirs. This was determined from studies of Tursiops truncatus and Delphinus delphis with harmless ultrasonic beams projected noninvasively to determine movements of the air sacs.

Submitted on February 8, 1980
Revised on September 30, 1980


THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN CITED BY OTHER ARTICLES:
Hearing and whistling in the deep sea: depth influences whistle spectra but does not attenuate hearing by white whales (Delphinapterus leucas) (Odontoceti, Cetacea).
S. H. Ridgway, D. A. Carder, T. Kamolnick, R. R. Smith, C. E. Schlundt, and W. R. Elsberry (2002)
J. Exp. Biol. 204, 3829-3841
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Science. ISSN 0036-8075 (print), 1095-9203 (online)