Recordings made in the Sea of Cortez off Mexico's Baja Peninsula found that the deep, low-frequency calls are made exclusively by male whales.Researchers said the calls -- which can be heard across great distances -- may alert females that prey has been found, giving males the opportunity to court the females when they arrive to feed.
If the sounds are in fact mating calls, noise pollution from shipping, seismic surveys and military sonar could be making it more difficult for male and female finback whales to find each other.
Finback, or fin, whales are second only to blue whales in size, growing up to 88 feet and 70 tons. They are found in all the world's oceans and are the fastest of the great whales, earning them the nickname the "greyhound of the sea."
