Sea Mammal Research Unit, Scottish Oceans Institute, University of St Andrews, Fife KY16 8LB, UK.
El Paso Zoo, El Paso, TX, USA.
Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci. 2021 Oct 25;376(1836):20200251. doi: 10.1098/rstb.2020.0251. Epub 2021 Sep 6.
Pinnipeds have been identified as one of the best available models for the study of vocal learning. Experimental evidence for their learning skills is demonstrated with advanced copying skills, particularly in formant structure when copying human speech sounds and melodies. By contrast, almost no data are available on how learning skills are used in their own communication systems. We investigated the impact of playing modified seal sounds in a breeding colony of grey seals () to study how acoustic input influenced vocal development of eight pups. Sequences of two or three seal pup calls were edited so that the average peak frequency between calls in a sequence changed up or down. We found that seals copied the specific stimuli played to them and that copies became more accurate over time. The differential response of different groups showed that vocal production learning was used to achieve conformity, suggesting that geographical variation in seal calls can be caused by horizontal cultural transmission. While learning of pup calls appears to have few benefits, we suggest that it also affects the development of the adult repertoire, which may facilitate social interactions such as mate choice. This article is part of the theme issue 'Vocal learning in animals and humans'.
鳍足类动物已被确定为研究发声学习的最佳模型之一。它们的学习能力的实验证据表现为高级的复制技能，尤其是在模仿人类语音和旋律时的共振峰结构。相比之下，关于学习技能如何在它们自己的通信系统中使用，几乎没有数据。我们研究了在繁殖的灰海豹（）群体中播放修改后的海豹声音的影响，以研究声学输入如何影响 8 只幼崽的发声发育。对两个或三个海豹幼崽叫声的序列进行编辑，以便序列中叫声之间的平均峰值频率向上或向下变化。我们发现海豹会复制它们听到的特定刺激，并且随着时间的推移，复制变得更加准确。不同群体的差异反应表明，发声产生的学习被用于实现一致性，这表明海豹叫声的地理变异可能是由水平文化传播引起的。虽然幼崽叫声的学习似乎没有什么好处，但我们认为它也会影响成年发声库的发展，这可能有助于如配偶选择等社会互动。本文是主题为“动物和人类的发声学习”的一部分。
