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Sounds of the Sea

For more than half a century, scientists have been recording and analyzing the underwater calls of whales. Now, biologists know that highly intelligent whales communicate extensively through sound.

Fish, however, are a different story. What are they doing with their vocalizations? Is it communicative, or something else? Regardless of the answers, there's no question that many ocean creatures are noisemakers. In fact, the placid undersea world is actually a pretty busy place when it comes to auditory sensations.

Here's a taste of what's going on down there:

Oyster Toadfish
The oyster toadfish is not just a noisy swimmer, but holds the distinction of having been to space. Members of the species — Opsanus tau — traveled to the space station for tests. Known for the male's "foghorn" vocalizations, the oyster toadfish lives in the shallows of the Atlantic, from Maine to the West Indies.

Hear the Oyster Toadfish
Real | Windows

Humpback Whale
The "singing whales," male humpbacks communicate through unique songs, with some intricate compositions lasting 10 minutes or more. The songs may serve several purposes; among the most prominent is to attract females.

Hear the Humpback
Real | Windows

Atlantic Croaker
The Atlantic croaker is a common fish on the East Coast of the United States, often feeding at the shoreline and migrating to the Gulf of Mexico. Averaging less than a foot long, croakers can be caught by those fishing from land into the Atlantic Ocean surf.

Hear the Croaker
Real | Windows

Cownose Ray
The cownose ray grows about 3 feet wide and is armed with a venomous tail spine. It feeds along the inshore shelves and shallow bays of the Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico, hunting hardshelled mollusks.

Hear the Cownose Ray
Real | Windows

Orca Whale
"Wolves of the sea," orcas are pack hunters that feed on a variety of prey, sometimes even attacking animals bigger than themselves. Their vocalizations include clicks, which may be "bounced" off prey to locate meals, pulses and whistles. As with other whales, different pods are thought to have individual variations in their songs.

Hear the Orca
Real | Windows

African Pompano
The African pompano is found worldwide in tropical seas, growing to sizes of 5 feet long and weighing 50 pounds.

Hear the African Pompano
Real | Windows

Dolphin
Believed to be highly intelligent, dolphins are social and communicate largely by vocalizations, including whistles and squawks.

Hear the Dolphin
Real | Windows

Pilot Whale
A member of the dolphin family, the pilot whale is a highly intelligent, social, 20-foot-long squid eater.

Hear the Pilot Whale
Real | Windows

Roughneck Grunt
The roughneck grunt is a tropical fish found in the western Atlantic from the Caribbean coasts to Brazil and Mexico.

Hear the Roughneck Grunt
Real | Windows

Sea Catfish
The hardheaded sea catfish is a "mouthbreeder" fish. In this species, the male may place as many as 50 fertilized eggs in its mouth, carry them until they are hatched, and then thusly nestle the young fish until they are about 2 weeks old. It is found in the western Atlantic along the coast of the United States and Mexico.

Hear the Sea Catfish
Real | Windows

Underwater Earthquake
It's not a sea creature, but we wanted to throw this in. It's the sound of an earthquake in the Pacific's Astoria Canyon, about 10 miles off the coast of Oregon.

Hear the Undersea Earthquake
Real | Windows

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