Acoustic Signals Reveal Whales' Retreat from Ill-fated Oil Rig

[n2doc]

A technique that monitors whales through the sounds they emit has answered a key issue raised by the explosion of the Deepwater Horizon oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico two years ago this month.

The sound-monitoring technique revealed that sperm whales retreated from the immediate area around the spill caused by the explosion.

"There's obvious evidence of relocation," said team member Azmy Ackleh, professor and head of mathematics at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette.

The discovery is important because it provides information about a species almost hunted to extinction for its valuable oil in the 19th century.

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http://physicsbuzz.physicscentral.com/2012/04/acoustic-signals-reveal-whales-retreat.html