Secrets of Sound: Studying the Calls and Songs of Whales, Elephants, and Birds

Can whales communicate across miles of vast ocean? Can elephants talk to one another with sounds we cannot hear? Can birds' calls help us count them in the sky? These are the kinds of questions that drive the work of acoustic biologists. In Secrets of Sound, author April Pulley Sayre introduces us to three creative scientists -- Christopher W. Clark, Katy Payne, and Bill Evans -- who have dedicated themselves to researching how and why animals communicate. Sayre explores how new technologies and secret military information recently released are helping these scientists make exciting discoveries. Such work raises as many questions as it answers, and for the scientists (and readers) that's half the fun.

Through remarkable photographs and stories about whales, elephants, birds, and a few more animals in-between, this book celebrates the challenges of lab and fieldwork and the thrill of discovery. It not only explores the world of animal communication but also highlights the critical role scientific research can play in preserving endangered animals.