Whales and Climate
  • Home
  • About
  • Whales & Climate
    • Whales
    • Ocean Processes
    • Marine Biogeochemistry
    • Future Climate
  • Team
    • Project Organisations
  • News
  • Tools
  • Opportunities
  • Donate
  • Contact
September 22, 2020 by Olaf Meynecke

Griffith researchers eavesdrop on Humpback whales

Griffith researchers eavesdrop on Humpback whales
September 22, 2020 by Olaf Meynecke

For the first time Griffith University researchers will deploy a ‘hi-tech whale phone’ in Gold Coast waters to better understand the tail of the whale migration season.

The team from the Griffith Centre for Coastal Management will place the $17,000 hydrophone five kilometres offshore north of the Seaway in 30 metres depth, and leave it there for the next two months.

Researchers from the Griffith Centre for Coastal Management deploying the hydrophone off the Gold Coast

“With this device we can listen to and record whales up to 10 kilometres away,” lead researcher Dr Olaf Meynecke said.

“The lower pitch whale songs the males make tend to travel much further than the other vocals they produce.”

“We are recording the whale vocals and songs in the Gold Coast Bay during the peak and tail end of the southern whale migration to discovery if there are still whales traversing our shores in November and how this compares to numbers in September and October.”

The hydrophone, deployed by the Griffith whale research group, will improve the monitoring of whales and add to boat-based surveys.

“This device will give us detailed information on the number of calls and their frequencies over time. We will also be able to distinguish whale songs from males and more social calls between mothers and calves.

“Listening to the sounds in the ocean off the Gold Coast will give us key information the amount and intensity of boat noise the whales are confronted with in the area and how this changes over time”.

Lead researcher Dr Olaf Meynecke from the Griffith Centre for Coastal Management

The hydrophone will also pick up the sounds of dolphins feeding near the seaway and could give some insight into their movement patterns as well.

“Over the two-month period the hydrophone will drain the energy from 64 batteries and generate hundreds of Gigabits of audio files that we’ll have to analyse, after we have retrieved the instrument from the bottom of the ocean later in the year,” Dr Meynecke said.

“But it will be definitely worth the effort. The data will provide new insights into the social activities of whales in the Gold Coast Bay and help us better understand how they use this area.”

Previous articleGold Coast Bay Hope Spot embraces the harmony between city and seaNext article Gold Coast Bay an oasis for humpback whales with calves

About The Research

This research project establishes a fundamental understanding of how changing ocean conditions are influencing the recovery of humpback whale populations and develop adaptation scenarios for advancing whale conservation, policies and programs. It will also lay the path for future research on other baleen species.

Recent Posts

How a humpback whale superhighway is offering warnings about climate changeJanuary 25, 2023
On track to explore climate impacts on whale migrationsOctober 12, 2022
The Role of Environmental Drivers in Humpback whale distribution, movement and behaviour.January 9, 2022

Categories

  • News
  • Publication
  • Research & Expedition

Tags

Climate Change Covid-19 humpback whales krill whales Whale Watching

Research

This research project will establish a fundamental understanding of how changing ocean conditions are influencing the recovery of humpback whale populations and develop adaptation scenarios for advancing whale conservation policies and programs.

Contact

Griffith University
Gold Coast, Qld 4222, Australia
+617 5552 8506
info@whalesandclimate.org
Mon. - Fri. 9AM - 5PM
  • Home
  • About
  • Whales & Climate
    • Whales
    • Ocean Processes
    • Marine Biogeochemistry
    • Future Climate
  • Team
    • Project Organisations
  • News
  • Tools
  • Opportunities
  • Donate
  • Contact
Whales and Climate Change - © All Right Reserved 2023
Proudly Built By Coral Creative Website Design