During breeding season, between December and March, elephant seals take a break from their lives at sea and congregate on the West Coast from San Francisco to Mexico. The males, called bulls, arrive first and fight to establish dominance. Winning males become alphas with a whole harem of females with which they can breed. Losers become betas, connecting with females only opportunistically, when the alphas aren’t around and dominating other males that are even lower in the hierarchy.

What researchers already knew is that as they battle, the male elephant seals call out in rhythmic clicks or grunts that announce their identities. A few clicks may say: “I am Antonio, the Elephant Seal King,” “I am Paul, Prince of the Elephant Seals,” or “Hi, I’m Joe — just an average citizen seal here to learn.”

These voices are always the same, remaining stable year to year. Even young males not yet ready to breed arrive at the colony to start learning its social network. Knowing the ranks of your male colony mates is important for survival, because bulls are big and powerful: They stretch up to 16 feet long, can weigh more than two tons and possess toothy mouths with four sharp canines. An easily avoided fight can mean life or death for the seal.