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Journal Article

Underwater vocalizations in foraging female Antarctic fur seals (Arctocephalus gazella) in the Kerguelen Islands

Mathilde Chevallay; Christophe Guinet; Tiphaine Jeanniard du Dot
Marine Mammal Science · Vol. 40, Issue 3 · 2024

Abstract

In the marine environment, many animals use sound to interact and communicate with their conspecifics or other species. Over the last decades, the development of sound recording systems has allowed a significant advance in our knowledge of sound production in marine animals. We deployed miniature sound and movement tags on Antarctic fur seals (AFS), a small otariid foraging on mesopelagic fish, to uncover potential underwater vocalizations in this species. Tags recorded underwater sounds synchronously with high‐resolution AFS movements and diving behavior, allowing us to investigate the behavioral context of vocalizations in the natural environment. We provide evidence of underwater vocalizations in foraging female AFS in a context of foraging at sea. AFS produced stereotyped calls made of low‐frequency pulses produced in series, exclusively during foraging dives. We hypothesized that these acoustic pulse series could be used as an acoustic lure to confuse or attract fish prey, however, a larger sample size is needed to study the adaptive significance of these underwater vocalizations.

Bibliographic Information

JournalMarine Mammal Science
PublisherWiley
Publication Date2024-07-01
Publication Year2024
Volume40
Issue3
Document TypeJournal Article
Print ISSN0824-0469
eISSN1748-7692
DOI10.1111/mms.13118
SubjectMarine Biology

Access Information

NARA Access Coverage1997-01-01~Current
Journal Homepagehttps://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/loi/17487692
Publisher PageOpen Publisher Page
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