Baby seals can change tone and raise their voice much like humans, study says
Baby seals may be the latest animal to have a similar trait to humans – raising their voice so they are better understood.
A new study published Monday in the journal Philosophical Transactions of The Royal Society B. found the adorable creatures possess the rare ability of altering their tone.
In the study, eight harbor seal pups, aged 1 to 3 weeks old, were held in a Dutch rehabilitation center where researchers checked for vocal plasticity – when an animal or person adapts their voice to changes in the environment.
Vocal plasticity is important to increase potential mating opportunities, escaping predators and the speed of social learning, the study said. Seals are among the few mammals capable of vocal learning.
The baby seals were played sounds from the Wadden Sea for several days at three different volumes ranging from no sound to 65 decibels – about the volume of laughter.
'Sharks can’t see fine details or colours': You look like a seal – at least to a baby great white shark, study suggests
A fish story that goes back millions of years: Kansas fisherman lands huge alligator gar
This went on for several days, and to the amazement of the researchers, the pups were able to alter their tone.
“Seal pups have a more advanced control over their vocalizations than assumed up until now,” Andrea Ravignani, an author of the study, said in a press release.
The study said the baby seals lowered their tone of voice when they heard louder sea noises and held a steady pitch with more intense noise levels. One pup showed signs of the Lombard effect – a reflex when a speaker raises their voice to be better understood.
The pups were eventually released back into wild, and researchers hope this observation can lead to more discoveries behind speech.
“These results show that seals may be the most promising species to find these direct connections, and unravel the mystery of speech,” Ravignani said.
Follow reporter Asha Gilbert @Coastalasha. Email: agilbert@usatoday.com.