Orcas may join parrots as animals capable of mimicking human speech. A study examined a captive orca that can imitate words. Some of her phrases are unmistakable, raising the question: Does she understand what she’s saying?
Meet Wikie
Wikie, an orca at Marineland Aquarium in France, can mimic sounds like “hello” and “Amy.” Remarkably, she does this with little to no practice, sometimes succeeding on her first try.
Imitating Orcas
Mimicry is natural for orcas. They copy movements and even the calls of other marine animals. “We wanted to test their vocal flexibility,” said Josep Call, a professor at the University of St. Andrews.
Trained to Copy
Wikie was trained to imitate another orca’s movements. Using this training, researchers had her copy five unfamiliar orca sounds and human words like “hello” and “bye-bye.”
Copying Sounds
Her trainers and researchers judged her vocal accuracy. Wikie even succeeded on her first attempt with some human words.
Some Caveats
Experts clarify that Wikie isn’t “speaking.” While she can imitate sounds, there’s no evidence she understands them. More research is needed to explore orca dialects in the wild.
