Shadowing Practice: Why seals are coming back to the Thames - BBC London - Learn English Speaking with Video
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Today I'm with ZSL, the Zoological Society of London, as they carry out their annual census of seals on the Thames.
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Now unfortunately the best way to do that is by using one of these.
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Hello, Theo.
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- Hi, Andy.
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Hi there.
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Come on in.
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Thank you, sir.
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See, I see a map of the Thames estuary here.
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Is that where we're going to go today?
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Yeah, so Andy's going to take us up over the Thames, over the sand banks and the coastline, and we're going to check out how many seals we can see.
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Now Andy, I understand you've been flying this part of the world for 20 years.
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And in that 20 years, you've seen the seals the whole time?
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Yeah, I have.
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I think it came as a surprise to everybody that there were so many in the estuary.
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But of course you live around here, do you think most of the population know about the seals on their doorstep?
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Most people do not know there's any seals out there at all.
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And of course the $64 ,000 question, will we see some today?
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Previously when doing these kinds of surveys we've seen good numbers and we're doing this survey at the right time of year.
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So fingers crossed, we'll see plenty today.
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Let's go spot some seals.
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We head out to Margate Sands looking for grey and harbour seals.
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I must not go to sand over there, so it's whatever the one is next to it.
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It's not long before we spot our first group of seals.
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I think I can see some seals on the end of this picture anyway.
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Right on that bend there, there's maybe about ten seals.
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Wonderful.
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Real variation in colour as well.
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Thea takes pictures of the seals to analyse later.
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And I'm using a GPS unit to help identify where each group is found.
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- What's your weight point?
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- Weight point 224.
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I counted 19 seals there.
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They all look like harbour seals.
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This is cutting edge conservation work on seals and it doesn't really get much more exciting than this.
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The seals are coming up again.
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- It's well there, some pups, beer.
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Back on the ground and Thea is already analysing the results.
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After each survey, we take all the photos and we go through them all, identify the species for each bank or point on the coastline.
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And we come together to ensure that if there's any discrepancy between number or species ID, then we work that out together and make sure that we've got as close to an accurate count.
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as we possibly can.
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What more can you tell from just that picture alone?
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We look at each individual seal and we look for features that indicate what the species is.
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So for a harbour seal, For example, Generally you'd see the eyes on the front of the head and a shorter snout,
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whereas for a grey seal you'd see usually like they call it a Roman nose, so it's sloping, the eyes further back and to the side.
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And that's a harborsie, a much more dog -like with funny little nostrils and angle as well.
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Since ZSL began monitoring the sales six years ago, numbers have doubled.
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with an estimated 3 ,500 of them living in the Thames.
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We take the increase in seals that we're seeing as a positive sign of the health of the ecosystem.
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We should be very proud of the Thames, it's incredibly biodiverse, it is full of life.
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It's not just brown, underneath there is plenty of fish and all sorts of other exciting species.
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What's particularly exciting is the harbour seals are actually breeding in the Thames estuary.
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first ever pup count.
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We recorded 138 pups which is great news.
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There was a survey back in 2011 by the Sea Mammal Research Unit
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and they recorded in the region of 40 pups So that does suggest an increase.
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It's strong evidence that obviously the Thames is a breeding site for these animals.
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The river has come a long way from 60 years ago, when it was declared biologically dead.
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London and the Thames at Wandsworth illustrates a quaint facet of the river pollution.
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It seems a nationwide demand for clean rivers is the only hope.
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We're much more careful about what goes into our river, so Sewage treatment works as an example of that.
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And we really have come a long way.
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That's why we see all this life, but that's not to say we don't still have some way to go.
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to keep maintaining this trajectory of a healthier Thames.
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Pfff.
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The cleaner water is providing fish for the seals, which are now being spotted across the capital.
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How far are we seeing seals moving up the towns?
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- So we're seeing them go all the way up until the tidal limit in Teddington.
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So they're traveling all through central London
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and there are kind of hotspots around London where people see them
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and they are generally where you get a higher footfall or you have taller buildings.
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So Canary Wharf is known for a bit of a hot spot for spotting seals.
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And people having interactions with them as well.
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Yeah, there are some interesting videos that have popped up of them climbing aboard the front of a kayak or a canoe.
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We don't know necessarily where this behavior comes from, but they're curious and inquisitive and highly intelligent animals.
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But it's not just seals that are turning up in the Thames.
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There have been recent reports I've harbored porpoise.
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Dolphins and even seahorses as well.
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But perhaps most astonishingly, in 2018, Benny turned up.
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The first ever beluga whale in British waters was found just down there.
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Amen.
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Oh The whale, nicknamed Benny the Beluga, living in a stretch of the Thames, may be able to survive there, according to experts.
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Our very own wildlife cameraman Russell Savory was lucky enough to capture these shots of the beluga.
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Cruise ships, the bulk carriers and things were going up and down the Thames and this beluga just bobbing around there.
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Obviously fishing I guess but to be able to get a beluga in the Thames, it's just unreal.
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while undoubtedly the best way to sense the seals is from the air.
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If you want to get up close and personal, you're going to need another form of transport.
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I want a boat.
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We never used to see them, but over the last ten years they've started off from about six seals, and now they've just gradually got more and more seals around the coast.
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Where we go, six seals are now 120.
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Stuart Barnes runs sail tours on his boat along the Thames estuary.
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Hopefully I can get you in the region of about 10 to 15 metres.
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Yeah, let's go do it.
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Ten minutes from Grumsgate Harbor and a magical sight awaits us.
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These are all harbour sales, getting the most wonderful views.
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The thing that I'm amazed by is the colour variation.
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Some are black, some are grey, some are blonde, some are ginger, some are variegated and spotted all over.
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And there's a few youngsters that were obviously born maybe five, six, seven weeks ago, just on the water's edge.
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It just goes to show the Greater Thames Estuary is in pretty good mig.
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We won't know the results from this year's SEAL survey for a few months.
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But from what we've seen, the population here is thriving.
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And so, is the Mother Thames.
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Why Practice Speaking with This Thames Seals Video?
Practicing speaking with this video offers a dynamic, real-world context: it blends casual conversation, expert insights, and on-location reporting. The dialogue mirrors everyday interactions (e.g., asking questions, sharing observations) and formal discussion (e.g., scientific analysis), making it ideal for IELTS speaking practice or general fluency. By using shadow speech—repeating lines aloud as you watch—you’ll improve pronunciation, intonation, and natural pacing. It’s a fun way to learn vocabulary related to nature, conservation, and local ecosystems, all while mastering conversational flow.
Grammar & Expressions in Context
- "I think it came as a surprise to everybody that there were so many...": This structure uses "it came as a surprise" to express unexpectedness, a common phrase for sharing reactions. Practice rephrasing with "it was a shock" or "it amazed us" to expand your range.
- "We take the increase in seals that we're seeing as a positive sign...": "Take [noun] as a sign" is useful for interpreting evidence. Replace "positive sign" with "warning" or "indicator" to describe different contexts (e.g., "take the storm clouds as a sign to stay indoors").
- "It's not just brown, underneath there is plenty of fish...": The contrast "not just... there is" emphasizes hidden depth. Use it to highlight overlooked details (e.g., "It's not just a small town, there is a vibrant art scene").
Common Pronunciation Traps
The video features British English accents, with subtle pronunciation quirks. Watch for:
- "Thames": Pronounced "temz" (not "thaymes"). Listen closely to avoid over-enunciating the "th" sound.
- "Estuary": The stress falls on the first syllable ("ES-chu-uh-ree"), not the second. Misplacing stress can make it hard to understand.
- "Biodiverse": Break it into "bye-oh-DYE -vurs" to avoid blending the "o" and "d" sounds. Practice saying it slowly before using it in shadowing exercises.
Use a shadowing app to repeat these words and match the speaker’s rhythm. Focus on mimicking the natural pauses and emphasis—key for sounding fluent in real conversations.
Grammar in this video
The structures the speaker uses most, with the exact words from the video:
| Structure | In the video |
|---|---|
| Present perfect have/has + past participle — a past action that still matters now | you've seen · we've seen · have doubled |
| Passive voice be + past participle — the focus is on what happens, not who does it | is found · was declared · being spotted |
| Relative clauses who / which + clause — extra information about a person or thing | pups which is · seals, which are |
What is the Shadowing Technique?
Shadowing is a science-backed language learning technique originally developed for professional interpreter training and popularized by polyglot Dr. Alexander Arguelles. The method is simple but powerful: you listen to native English audio and immediately repeat it out loud — like a shadow following the speaker with just a 1–2 second delay. Unlike passive listening or grammar drills, shadowing forces your brain and mouth muscles to simultaneously process and reproduce real speech patterns. Research shows it significantly improves pronunciation accuracy, intonation, rhythm, connected speech, listening comprehension, and speaking fluency — making it one of the most effective methods for IELTS Speaking preparation and real-world English communication.