Ancient Scots sang songs to lure seals into traps

Ancient Scottish fishermen sang a song to lure seals, which were then killed for their meat and skin, according to a new study by a Scottish researcher from the University of the Highlands and Islands.

Edinburgh, Aug 19 : Ancient Scottish fishermen sang a song to lure seals, which were then killed for their meat and skin, according to a new study by a Scottish researcher from the University of the Highlands and Islands.

Dr John Purser, a research fellow at the University of the Highlands and Islands discovered a version of the "Fisherman's Song for Attracting Seals" prepared in the 19th century.

The tune, for which there are no known words, will be broadcast on Sunday as part of a documentary on Radio Scotland.

Dr Purser, also the director of Gaelic music at Sabhal Mor Ostaig, the university's Gaelic College on the Isle of Skye, said, the seal song was thought up centuries ago because seals' calls often sounded "like human singing".

"Since the stone age in Scotland, people used sounds to lure in creatures which they could eat. Bone flutes have been found which were well adapted to attracting birds. But this song is the first evidence we know of where people sang for their meals," the Scotsman quoted Dr Purser as saying.

ANI