| Summary: | Progress Code: completed Statement: Acoustic data collection: Weddell seal female calls were recorded from four breeding sites, Weddell Arm (WA), Partizan Island (PI), Long Fjord (LF), and Topografov Island (TI), near Davis Station, Antarctica in November 1997. Routine recordings were made between noon and midnight in good weather conditions (ie, with low wind and no precipitation). Data collection was opportunistic in nature, with actively vocalising seals recorded for longer periods. Seals were approached from a frontal position, while they were hauled out on the ice or swimming in a pool, so that they were not surprised by the sudden arrival of the single researcher. The microphone was shielded from direct wind by the researcher's body, where possible, and brought within 3 m of the seal's head. The researcher indicated verbally whether the focal mother, her pup or a distant seal produced the call recorded. Jaw snaps were directed towards the researcher only, while mother-pup 'contact' calls were produced when the female was orientated towards the pup or the researcher. Recordings were terminated if the seals became aggressive or began to move away from the researcher. Potential disturbance to the animals was minimised by approaching the colonies only once a day for short periods of time, and only a few times throughout the study. Behavioural data collection Weddell seal mother-pup reunion behaviour was video recorded from three breeding sites; Turtle Rock, North Hutton Cliffs and South Hutton Cliffs, near McMurdo Sound, Antarctica from October-December 2003. Recordings were made between 08:00-22:00 in good weather conditions (ie, with low to moderate wind and no precipitation). Seals in McMurdo Sound are all habituated to close approach by research scientists as all pups are tagged within three days of birth, and all tags at breeding colonies are read every 3-5 days. The equipment box was positioned within 5 m of the focal mother-pup pair and left to record for 90 minutes. Recording Equimpment All Davis ...
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