Ronan the sea lion gits down to Boogie Wonderland

April 1, 2013 8:21 PM

Ronan keeping the beat | Sea Lion is First Non-Human Mammal to Keep a Beat | Study done at the Pinniped Cognition & Sensory Systems Laboratory.
posted by nickyskye (22 comments total)

That's great. Reminds me of this video.
posted by empath at 8:45 PM on April 1, 2013

I was reminded of this, personally.
posted by mykescipark at 9:22 PM on April 1, 2013 [3 favorites]

So now I wanna play some of the weirder Zappa, or maybe Mars Volta for him. Can he find the beat in Take Five?
posted by cmoj at 10:16 PM on April 1, 2013 [3 favorites]

I thought of Snowball, the dancing cockatoo.
posted by knile at 12:39 AM on April 2, 2013

They forgot about cows.
posted by Philosopher Dirtbike at 12:55 AM on April 2, 2013 [1 favorite]

"rhythmic entertainment". Hey that's an eggcorn!
posted by jeffj at 12:58 AM on April 2, 2013

The article mentions that our ability to move in time with an (anticipated) beat was considered to be something uniquely human and possibly linked with our language capabilities and our bipedal balance system. So this might change all that theory - not just a cute animal video. I'd recommend Howard Goodall's Documentary on Rhythm for some of the background.
posted by rongorongo at 2:14 AM on April 2, 2013

Headbanging is the most primitive form of musical appreciation.
posted by pracowity at 3:34 AM on April 2, 2013

Now sea lions have better dance moves than I do? Great.
posted by orme at 3:56 AM on April 2, 2013 [1 favorite]

Poor sea lion, exposed to such lack-luster beats. How about a bit of Tyler, or at least some intelligent drum and bass.
posted by nickrussell at 4:24 AM on April 2, 2013

Ronan, the lead singer of VNV Nation, does much the same thing only for burgers, not fish. That and he also writes music and sings pretty good as well.
posted by Randwulf at 4:52 AM on April 2, 2013

Those beats seemed to be the same in the songs they showed. For me to be convinced, I need a wider variety of beats (slow, fast, not 4/4 time).
posted by evening at 4:58 AM on April 2, 2013

This is pretty much how every frat guy I knew back in the '70s reacted to every single song. Many did not in fact keep the beat, however, so I'd have to say the sea lion is way ahead, and probably smells better too.
posted by kinnakeet at 5:48 AM on April 2, 2013

There is a certain Beluga whale that absolutely loves mariachi.
posted by OneThinDime at 6:27 AM on April 2, 2013

Chimpanzees feeling the Beat of the Drum
posted by stbalbach at 7:29 AM on April 2, 2013 [1 favorite]

Good one stbalbach. I think the Pinniped Cognition & Sensory Systems Lab should see that vid. I would have thought chimps would have been the first non-human mammal tested for beat recognition.
posted by nickyskye at 7:39 AM on April 2, 2013

pffft
posted by de at 7:48 AM on April 2, 2013

I think there should be a scientific study conducted on how and why I find it so compelling to bop my head along with a video of a dancing sea-lion. Oh, internet - cornucopia of self-discovery.
posted by Baby_Balrog at 8:11 AM on April 2, 2013

Chimpanzees feeling the Beat of the Drum

The problem with that video is the total lack of a control. It's not clear to me that the chimpanzees would have behaved any differently had the drumming not been going on. It's just too easy for us to interpret an animal swaying or shuffling back and forth as some kind of "dance"--but chimpanzees will do that with or without music.
posted by yoink at 8:55 AM on April 2, 2013

If you watch to the end they have the CUTEST LOGO EVAR.
posted by emjaybee at 9:24 AM on April 2, 2013

Damn, it feels good to keep a beat.
posted by idealist at 12:21 PM on April 2, 2013 [1 favorite]

In sadder sea lion news: Hundreds of Stranded Sea Lion Pups Along California Coast Perplex Researchers, Depress World
posted by homunculus at 8:31 PM on April 2, 2013