Some recent research indicates whales may use such features as navigational aids throughout their migration.

Scientists hypothesise that the whales use this pale side to "flash" their prey and herd them into place.

This finding suggested that the whales were using rhyme the way people do: as a mnemonic device to help them remember complex material.

The humpback whales have long used the Bank as a breeding and calving ground.

Increasingly, the investigation centers on how the whales use their newly observed powers.

While scientists have long suspected that the whales use both sounds to locate sources of squid or other food, little has been known about the details.

"This suggests that whales use rhyme in the same way we do: as a mnemonic device to help them remember complex material," the researchers write.

Other whales, such as the gray whale, only use one side of their baleen.

Visitors can hear courting males sing whale songs, which the whales may be using to attract mates.

It is not yet known whether toothed whales regularly use such a weapon.