Recordings were made of adult male and female Weddell seals on the ice during the breeding seasons of 1990 and 1997. The recordings were made near Davis, Antarctica in the Vestfold Hills. The vocalisations made with both the mouth and nostrils closed were classified into call types. These call types are also produced by the seals when underwater. The call classifications were based on those described by Thomas, J.A. and Kuechle,, V.B. (1982, J. Acoust. Soc. Amer. 72: 1730-1738) and Pahl, B.C., Terhune, J.M. and Burton, H.R. (1997, Aus. J. Zool. 45: 171-187). Nineteen call types were identified. Of these, males made 18 and females made 15. Trills are only made by males and it is likely that a stepped ascending whistle is only made by females. A roar and mew are also potential male-only call types. The data suggest that the Trill vocalisations can be used to indicate the presence of males. This will be useful when recording underwater where the calling seals cannot be observed directly.
A description of the types of calls made by Weddell Seals is listed below.
SymbolNameDescription
OToneConstant-frequency, predominantly sinusoidal call.
LGrowlConstant-frequency, broad bandwidth, long call.
QWhoopConstant-frequency call with a terminal upsweep.
SSqueakBrief call with constant frequency or rising frequency and an irregular waveform.
WAWhistle AscendingAscending frequency, sinusoidal waveform.
TCTrill Constant-FrequencyNarrow bandwidth trill with a constant-frequency beginning, sinusoidal or frequency-modulated waveform.
TTrillNarrow to broad bandwidth, containing a frequency downsweep, greater than 2 seconds.
WDWhistle DescendingDescending frequency, sinusoidal waveform (less than 2 seconds).
MMewAbruptly descending frequency followed by a long constant-frequency ending.
CChugAbruptly descending frequency followed by a brief constant-frequency ending.
GGuttural Glug (Grunt)Descending-frequency call that was lower than a Chug and had a brief duration.
WAGWhistle Ascending - GruntBrief Ascending Whistle followed by a Guttural Glug (Grunt), the two types alternate in a regular pattern.
KKnockAbrupt, brief-duration broadband sound
