Sea Lion Ronan Surpasses Humans in Beat Keeping

Ronan, a California sea lion at UC Santa Cruz, has demonstrated rhythmic synchronization skills that match or exceed those of humans, according to a new study in Scientific Reports. Tested with metronome beats at various tempos, including unfamiliar ones, Ronan maintained an average precision within 15 milliseconds of the beat, far surpassing the consistency of human participants. For comparison, the average human blink lasts about 150 milliseconds. Her performance places her in the 99th percentile when compared to humans, making her rhythmic accuracy exceptionally rare even among people. The study challenges the belief that only humans or vocal mimics like parrots possess precise beat-keeping abilities, as sea lions are not known for vocal mimicry. These findings suggest that the ability to synchronize with a beat may be more common in the animal kingdom than previously thought.