Lecture 6 - Animal Communication Flashcards
Define communication
Physical signal e.g. sound Need sender and receiver
Cant assume always aware intention for signal
Why do animals communicate?
Long term - survive and reproduce
Short term - alarms, food, mate attraction, maintenance bonds and social connections. Linked survival
Outline Honeybee dance Karl von Frisch 1919
Distance indicated by speed dance (rate waggling)
Bearing indicated by angle of waggle run
Outline Honeybess Wenner and Wells 1960s
Use odour, and info from dance.
What is important is information itself.
Outline Michelsen et al 1992 view on honeybees
Mechanical bee.
Bee uses distance and direction info
Outline Riley et al 2005 honeybees
Use transponders to measure flight paths.
All flew similar direction and distance
Some bees taken to a different release point and still flew in right direction and distance
Outline Struhsaker 1967, Cheney and Seyfarth alarm calls in Vervet Monkeys
Observations in Amboseli National Park - Kenya.
21 distinct messages for 3 major predators: leopards, eagles, snakes
Particular call each predator
Outline Cheney and Seyfarth alarm call study on the boy who cried wolf
After several calls stop looking = habituate
Seem to extract meaning from call - call be referential
Habituation does not transfer between calls
Outline Manser 2001 study on alarm calls in Meerkats
Different alarm calls depending on type predator
aerial, terrestrial, recruitment
Calls information about level of urgency
Receiving and acting on alarm signal be explained by CC
Outline Schotz and van de Weijer 2014 cat-human communication study
Humans ability classify meows - food related, vet related
Accuracy above chance 65%
Humans reported experience 70%, better inexperienced 54%
Definition of language
Pearce 2008: Arbitrariness of units e.g. words usually randomly represent event
Semanticity: meaning
Displacement: communication about events time or space.
Productivity: structured to rules, be used flexibly
Outline Teaching Human Language: Apes
Gardner and Gardner 1969: American Sign Language shaping and instrumental conditioning.
132 signs after 5 years
Limited combining of signs: “water bird” for swan
Outline the study on Ape Nim by Terrace, Petitto, Sanders and Bever 1979
End project produce 125 signs. Produce linear combinations 1.1-1.6 words combined
Compared 2year old learns 10 words every day.
Nim very low increase in utterance as he gets older. Cannot combine them
Outline Premack and Premack 1972 study on apes of visual symbols
Lana chimp trained use keyboard. Argument produce sentences, but really taught sequences pressing keys.
Reports 130 words.
Just responding/copying trainer.
86% communication request food reward.
Outline Pilley and Reid 2011 study on Dogs
Chaser dog trained >1000 objects. 4-5 hours per day 3 years.
Learned 1000 name object pairs. Monthly tests 20 items x5
Respond commands and object e.g. paw, nose.
Common nouns e.g. ball, toy correct all categories
Could pick out new object
