Jumping over the water and the accompanying noise were for humpback whales a way of communication
Humpback whales are known for their love of spectacular jumps from the water, which are accompanied by rattling fin strokes and myriad sprays. But why does it matter to the whales themselves? To find this out, the biologists at the Australian University of Queensland observed the behavior of 94 groups of humpbackers (Megaptera novaeangliae) both directly and through acoustic monitoring, tags, etc.
Scientists have noticed that whales actively jump and produce a lot of noise when nearby - within 4000 m - there is another group of humpbacks. If the distance is greater than this, such activity drops dramatically. The report on the work is published in the journal Marine Mammal Science, in the article scientists suggest that the real function of this behavior is social.
According to this version, jumps and accompanying sounds serve as a means of communication for various group activities. In fact, according to the authors of the work, whales are more likely to jump and rustle when there is a division or grouping of groups, or a newcomer joins the group of whales.