Acoustic data from the Perth Canyon, Western Australia, were collected for the 2017 northern migration allowing for detailed acoustic analysis of eastern Indian Ocean pygmy blue (EIOPB) whale songs within a migratory season to explore fine-scale variability in song production. An algorithm was used to follow the unit II signal in time, tracking the change in frequency over the duration of the signal and enabling a comparison of song unit production within and between singing bouts. The results of this analysis indicate that units from within the same song event have relatively consistent characteristics but vary between song events, suggesting it is possible that individual whales may have distinct vocal characteristics. The presence of breaks within a unit was identified as a significant level of variability in song production within the 2017 data set and was seen to increase throughout the season. It is hypothesised that unit breaks may play a role in intra-species communication as well as represent a novel variation to song production that increases song complexity and thus may increase individual fitness through sexual selection.

收集了来自西澳大利亚珀斯峡谷的 2017 年北部迁徙的声学数据，以便对迁徙季节内的东印度洋侏儒蓝 (EIOPB) 鲸鱼歌曲进行详细的声学分析，以探索歌曲产生的精细尺度变化。使用一种算法及时跟踪单元 II 信号，跟踪信号持续时间内的频率变化，并能够比较歌唱回合内和歌唱回合之间的歌曲单元制作。该分析的结果表明，同一歌曲事件中的单位具有相对一致的特征，但不同歌曲事件之间存在差异，这表明鲸鱼个体可能具有不同的声音特征。在 2017 年数据集中，单元内断点的存在被认为是歌曲制作中存在显着的变异性，并且在整个赛季中这种情况有所增加。据推测，单位断裂可能在物种内交流中发挥作用，并代表歌曲产生的一种新变化，增加歌曲的复杂性，从而可能通过性选择提高个体的适应性。