There is a lot we do know about the hundreds of species of turtles living on our planet. Except that is….how they sound or vocalize.
Papers published in the 1950’s claimed that turtles were deaf and did not vocalize. So until recently, and because of this false assumption, no one studied turtle vocalizations. From mongabay.com….
Two new studies published recently in Chelonian Conservation and Biology and Herpetologica find that two turtle species vocalize when they reproduce and during some social interactions, and that their vocalizations are many and varied.
The studies respectively looked at two very different species: giant Amazon river turtles (Podocnemis expansa) and leatherback sea turtles (Dermochelys coriacea). They found that the river turtles vocalized in all sorts of situations, from interactions between adults to hatchling communication. Leatherbacks, less social turtles, were also found to vocalize as when hatching and as they dispersed from their nests into the sea. Read more
Interesting…and a reminder that just because we humans can’t hear certain creatures making sounds, it does not mean they are not making them.
it took decades to dispel the belief that turtles are deaf and did not vocalize…and most scientists tuned out ever studying their vocalizations all because of published literature dating back from the 1950’s.
Related Lolako.com posts — especially on the giant Pacific Leatherback turtle (California’s official marine reptile) :
- The IOSEA and Pawikan Conservation Project
- Monterey Bay and our connection to the endangered Pacific leatherback sea turtles
- Giant Pacific leatherback turtle washed up dead off island in central Philippines
Did you know…Elephants also vocalize in super low frequencies that humans can’t hear. Low frequency sounds travel farther, making them better for long distance communication (see more about forest elephant vocalization here – The Cornell Lab Elephant Listening Project).