Canada's military is investigating a mysterious "pinging" that is emanating from the sea floor in the Arctic.

The sound, which has also been described as a "hum" or a "beep", has apparently spooked the local wildlife in the Fury and Hecla Strait.

Paul Quassa, a member of the legislative assembly, said the noise was "emanating from the sea floor".

"That's one of the major hunting areas in the summer and winter ... And this time around, this summer, there were hardly any. And this became a suspicious thing."

The military said it was investigating what was causing the sound. 

"The Department of National Defence has been informed of the strange noises emanating in the Fury and Hecla Strait area, and the Canadian Armed Forces are taking the appropriate steps to actively investigate the situation," an armed forces spokesperson told CBC News.

Department of National Defence internal correspondence suggested submarines were not considered a likely source of the noise but had not the been ruled out, the broadcaster said.

Internal correspondence between sources in the Department of National Defence, obtained by CBC News, suggest submarines were not immediately ruled out, but were also not considered a likely cause. 

George Qulaut, another member of the legislative assembly, said he also noticed the lack of wildlife.

"That passage is a migratory route for bowhead whales, and also bearded seals and ringed seals. There would be so many in that particular area," he told CBC News, recalling his own days of hunting there. 

"This summer there was none."

The pinging has prompted much speculation. Some have blamed Baffinland Iron Mines Corporation, which has previously conducted sonar surveys of nearby. However, the company said  it was not conducting any surveys in the area, and had no equipment in the water, CBC News reported.

Others have suggested Greenpeace might have caused the sound to scare wildlife away from the rich hunting ground, an allegation the environmental group denied.  

(Telegraph)