Research

Study: Leopard Seal Songs Mirror Human Nursery Rhymes

AUG 1 2025·Updated AUG 2 2025

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Study: Leopard Seal Songs Mirror Human Nursery Rhymes

Story

Above: A leopard seal in Antarctica. Image credit: Unsplash

The Facts

According to a study published in Scientific Reports on Thursday, male leopard seals perform underwater songs during breeding season, diving for two minutes to sing before surfacing for air. They repeat this cycle for up to 13 hours daily over several weeks from late October to early January.
ABC
IFLScience
Researchers analyzed recordings of 26 leopard seals from Eastern Antarctica collected in the 1990s and found their songs consist of five distinct call types: high double trills, medium single trills, low descending trills, low double trills, and hoots with low single trills.
Nature
The Conversation
The information entropy analysis revealed that leopard seal songs have predictability levels similar to those of human nursery rhymes from The Golden Song Book, including classics such as "Baa Baa Black Sheep" and "Three Blind Mice."
The Conversation
IFLScience
While all leopard seals share the same five notes that are acoustically indistinguishable between individuals, each seal arranges these notes in unique sequences to create their song and broadcast individual identity.
News.com.au
National Post
The songs are believed to serve dual purposes: attracting female mates and establishing territorial dominance. The simple, repetitive structure allows the calls to travel long distances across Antarctic waters without degradation.
Nature
UNSW Sydney
Female leopard seals also vocalize intermittently throughout the year, though researchers remain uncertain whether this behavior serves to communicate with pups, teach singing skills, or establish territorial markers among females.
National Post
IFLScience

Sources Split

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ESTAB

The Spin

Narrative A

These songs represent a remarkable evolutionary adaptation for survival in harsh Antarctic conditions. The nursery rhyme-like structure ensures maximum communication efficiency across vast ocean distances, where finding mates is challenging. The repetitive simplicity allows seals to maintain consistent messaging while conserving energy during the demanding breeding season.

The Conversation

IFLScience

Narrative B

The comparison to nursery rhymes oversimplifies what may be a complex communication system. The songs could contain sophisticated information beyond current scientific understanding, with potential regional variations and evolutionary changes over time that researchers haven't fully explored. Female vocalizations suggest additional layers of social communication that remain mysterious.