Noc, a beluga whale, gained recognition for his extraordinary ability to mimic human speech, a phenomenon first observed in 1984 after his transfer to the National Marine Mammal Foundation in San Diego in 1977. Staff initially mistook the peculiar sounds from his enclosure for distant human conversations. The mystery was solved when a diver working in the enclosure surfaced, asking who had instructed him to "get out," a phrase Noc had apparently vocalized. Acoustic analysis confirmed that Noc produced sounds within the human speech frequency range of 200–300 Hz by manipulating his nasal tract and phonic lips, controlling pressure within his vestibular sacs to alter vocalization timbre. This complex process suggested a strong motivation for connection.
This vocal learning demonstrated Noc's capacity to replicate the rhythm and acoustic spectrum of human speech, though research indicated he did not comprehend the meaning of the sounds. His actions were attributed to curiosity and close human interaction rather than genuine communication. The findings, published in Current Biology in 2012, detailed Noc's unique vocal capabilities. Noc continued this human-like vocalization for approximately four years, ceasing the behavior around the time he reached sexual maturity. He lived at the foundation for about 25 years, becoming a symbol of the surprising cognitive and vocal abilities of marine mammals.
Noc's case provided the first recorded and analyzed evidence of a beluga whale spontaneously mimicking human speech. Previous anecdotal reports included descriptions of wild belugas in the 1940s making sounds akin to "children shouting in the distance," and a beluga named Lagosi at the Vancouver Aquarium in the 1970s that could vocalize its own name. Noc's story highlights the complex world of cetacean communication and the potential for learning in these intelligent creatures, underscoring the importance of marine mammal conservation.