Skip to main content

Harms Researches Hearing of Baleen Whales in Norway

Dr. Harms on watch from Eagle's Nest looking for incoming minke whales, above the modified salmon farm ring where the hearing testing was conducted.
Dr. Harms on watch from Eagle's Nest looking for incoming minke whales, above the modified salmon farm ring where the hearing testing was conducted.

This summer, Dr. Craig Harms, NC State Professor and Director of the Marine Health Program at the NC State Center for Marine Sciences and Technology (CMAST), participated in a global research team to collect data on the hearing of baleen whales in Norway.  Harms was one of two veterinarians working on the project. 

Research results yielded that minke whales have a higher frequency limit to their hearing range than historically thought.  This discovery will assist in establishing ocean noise regulations to help protect the whales.  Harms says, “Accomplishing hearing testing on two minke whales in the third month-long field session over the past three years was dramatic.  It was tremendously rewarding to take my experience to a project with such important conservation outcomes.”

Read more on the research HERE.