Gravelly love ballads work for whales too

Move over, Barry White. The basso profundo of soul music has nothing on male fin whales, which use their ultra-deep voices to woo females across vast spaces.

The purpose of the loud low-frequency songs had not been clear. But now, US scientists have found that they are love ballads.

The research team, led by Donald Cross at the University of California, discovered that only males that sing and concluded that the "songs" – which blue whales also produce – could have only one purpose. But there is, sadly, a problem: low-frequency sounds give little clue to location – making it hard for the females to work out where the males are.