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Wild grey seals clap underwater to communicate
"The clap was incredibly loud and at first I found it hard to believe what I had seen." – Dr Ben Burville.

Piercing sound used to attract potential mates

A study led by Monash University has revealed that grey seals will clap their flippers together while underwater to communicate during breeding season.

It is widely known that marine mammals such as whales and seals communicate vocally through whistles and calls, and zoo animals can be trained to clap on command, but this is the first time a seal has been observed in the wild clapping its front flippers of its own accord.

Dr Ben Burville, a visiting researcher with Newcastle University, filmed the animals in the wild for 17 years, before capturing footage of a male grey seal producing a loud ‘crack’ sound by clapping its flippers together.

“The clap was incredibly loud and at first I found it hard to believe what I had seen.” Comments Dr Burville.

Researchers have theorised that the loud, high-frequency noise is used as a display of strength, which cuts through background noise to warn off competitors and attract potential mates during breeding season.

“Think of a chest-beating male gorilla, for example. Like seal claps, those chest beats carry two messages: I am strong, stay away; and I am strong, my genes are good,” Says Dr David Hocking from Monash University’s School of Biological Sciences.

He continues: “Human noise pollution is known to interfere with other forms of marine mammal communication, including whale song, but if we do not know a behaviour exists, we cannot easily act to protect it.”

The discovery of this important social behaviour among seals can help scientists and researchers to better understand the animals and work to protect their mating activity and breeding success.

Footage captured by Dr Burville can be seen below:

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Vets to run marathon for World Animal Protection

News Story 1
 Two recently graduated veterinary surgeons will be running the London Marathon in April to raise money for the charity World Animal Protection.

Alex Bartlett and Maeve O'Neill plan to run the race together if they are given the same start times.

Dr O'Neill said: "You're always limited in what you can do to help animals, so it is nice to raise money for a charity that helps animals around the world."

Dr Bartlett added: "I have never run a marathon before and am excited to run my first one for such a good cause!"

Both Dr Bartlett and Dr O'Neill have fundraising pages online. 

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News Shorts
BSAVA releases new Guide to Procedures

The British Small Animal Veterinary Association (BSAVA) has published a new edition of its Guide to Procedures for Small Animal Practice.

It has added four new procedures; cystostomy tube placement, endotracheal intubation, point-of-care ultrasound and wet-to-dry dressings.

BSAVA says that it is an essential step-by-step guide to diagnostic and therapeutic procedures performed in practice. The textbook includes new images and illustrations, as well as high-definition videos for use prior to procedures.

Nick Bexfield and Julia Riggs, editors of the new edition, said: "We have built upon the success of the previous editions by responding to the feedback received from the BSAVA readership, and hope this new guide helps to further increase the confidence and accuracy with which these procedures are performed."

Print copies are available in the BSAVA store, with a digital version in the BSAVA library.