Social

calls,

whistles are burst pulses that they will make to communicate with their family units or communicate with other animals that are in the area. And when they're communicating, there's a lot the researchers don't know about what is exactly that they're communicating with each other. But a lot of it is group membership. So kind of or individual identity. So a lot of species are thought to have a whistle that identifies them specifically, much in the way that we have a first and last name that identifies us specifically who we are. Some dolphins have whistles that identify specifically who they are.

So you mean when they're calling out, they might be saying, hey, it's Jane, just wanted to tell you guys this. Or they might just be saying, hey, it's Jane.

Hey, it's Jane. Hey, it's Jane. And they just kind of do that over and over again. And then sometimes another, you know, another dolphin will come up and will respond. And they might respond by saying, hey, it's Amy. Hey, it's Amy. Or they might or they might say, hey, Jane, they'll produce your whistle. It's very simple, but it's just kind of an individual recognition of each other.

So they're not saying, hey, it's Jane. I'm feeling a little low today. Want to, you know, swim around and see if we can hang

out for a little while. Maybe I'll feel better.

You know, it could be we have not gotten that far at all. Yeah, I think we're still pretty science as a field is in is in really early stages in terms of what we understand about dolphin communication and whale communication.

Again, another opportunity for all of you aspiring whale biologists to crack the code. Coming up, we'll hear more about Amy's research on one specific type of whale and what she's been able to learn about how different groups of this same type of whale kind of speak different languages. But first, here's a message for the adults who are listening.

Hear that? That's another sale on Shopify. The platform trusted by millions of entrepreneurs to create their online shop and so much more. Customize your online shop to your brand, discover new customers and build the relationships that keep them coming back. Now it's your turn to try Shopify. Sign up for a free trial at Shopify.com slash PRX. Go to Shopify.com slash PRX to start selling online today. Shopify.com slash PRX.

This is But Why? I'm Jane Lindholm. Today we're learning about how whales talk to each other with Amy Van Seis of NOAA's Northwest Fisheries Science Center. She's been telling us about the different ways whales make sounds and a little bit about how they use those sounds to communicate and sometimes to map the ocean around them. Amy has spent a lot of time studying one particular kind of whale, the short-finned pilot whale.