Fin whale song evolution in the North Atlantic

• Published in: eLife
• Main Authors: Romagosa, Miriam, Nieukirk, Sharon, Cascão, Irma, Marques, Tiago A, Dziak, Robert, Royer, Jean-Yves, O'Brien, Joanne, Mellinger, David K, Pereira, Andreia, Ugalde, Arantza, Papale, Elena, Aniceto, Sofia, Buscaino, Giuseppa, Rasmussen, Marianne, Matias, Luis, Prieto, Rui, Silva, Mónica A
• Other Authors: Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia, Fundo Regional para a Ciência e Tecnologia, Fundación Carmen y Severo Ochoa, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment, Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Norwegian Research Council, Velux Fonden, Knud Højgårds Fond, US Navy, H2020 European Institute of Innovation and Technology, Operational Program AZORES 2020, NOAA Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory, Governo Regional dos Açores
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: eLife Sciences Publications, Ltd 2024
• Subjects: Balaenoptera physalus; Fin whale; North Atlantic
• Online Access: http://dx.doi.org/10.7554/elife.83750; https://cdn.elifesciences.org/articles/83750/elife-83750-v2.pdf; https://cdn.elifesciences.org/articles/83750/elife-83750-v2.xml; https://elifesciences.org/articles/83750

Animal songs can change within and between populations as the result of different evolutionary processes. When these processes include cultural transmission, the social learning of information or behaviours from conspecifics, songs can undergo rapid evolutions because cultural novelties can emerge more frequently than genetic mutations. Understanding these song variations over large temporal and spatial scales can provide insights into the patterns, drivers and limits of song evolution that can ultimately inform on the species’ capacity to adapt to rapidly changing acoustic environments. Here, we analysed changes in fin whale ( Balaenoptera physalus ) songs recorded over two decades across the central and eastern North Atlantic Ocean. We document a rapid replacement of song INIs (inter-note intervals) over just four singing seasons, that co-occurred with hybrid songs (with both INIs), and a clear geographic gradient in the occurrence of different song INIs during the transition period. We also found gradual changes in INIs and note frequencies over more than a decade with fin whales adopting song changes. These results provide evidence of vocal learning in fin whales and reveal patterns of song evolution that raise questions on the limits of song variation in this species.