Sea lions are the only non-human mammals that have the ability to keep a beat. Dancing is universal among humans, and was thought to be unique to humans as well. When some species of birds, like cockatoos, were found to have a similar capability for rhythmic movement, it was linked to their ability to mimic sound. But even mammals with limited vocal ability can move in time with a beat over a broad range of sounds and tempos. In an experiment, Ronan, a California sea lion, was found to bob her head in time to pop music!
The researchers also conducted a test to rule out the possibility Ronan was bobbing her head a split second after hearing the beat – rather than anticipating it and bobbing her head in time to the beat.
In this experiment, she bobbed her head in time to a metronome-like sound which was programmed to skip a beat. Ronan bobbed her head even even when the beat was missed.
Professor Adrian North, Head of the School of Psychology at Curtin University and a specialist in the psychology of music said the findings did not surprise him.
“There’s nothing inherently human about music. Across board, there is an awful lot of research showing that it’s not just humans that react to music in a general way,” he said.
Picture Credit : Google
