Most would agree that communication seems relatively species specific. In other words, understanding the complex sounds and behavioral actions in other animals is always a tedious task. Still, with the ideas put forth in evolution, we must assume that not only do the ways in which animals communicate stem from behaviors of common ancestors, but also are based on using energy efficiently. This assumption can be solidified by comparing the complex communication behaviors exhibited by dolphins and humans.
As explained in the August 11th 2009 Discovery news article, Dolphin Speak Relies on Brevity , by Emily Sohn, Dolphins display a communication trend that not only resembles trends in human language but also accounts for communicating in an efficient manner. When humans converse, it is obvious that the words used most often are short, such as “the” or “I” , making it easier to get our points across without having to use excess energy. It has been found through field studies done by Lusseau and Ramos Ferrer-i-cancho , that dolphins exhibit this same trait in their non-vocal behaviors. Although these marine mammals have many complex communication behaviors, the simplest actions are those that were observed and used by the dolphins the most. This leads to a couple conclusions. First of all, as described by Sohn, the idea put forth by many scientists when referring to human languages, called the “law of brevity”, can now be related to another species. In addition, since humans and dolphins diverged from a common ancestor millions of years ago, it may be safe to say that these characteristics are an example of convergent evolution due to efficient usage of energy. Lastly, a possible idea could be that even the most basic communication used before the evolution of mammals was structured in discrete units, and complexities were built from these units as needed over time.
Sohn’s article also poses many other underlying ideas, such as why animals may use the same behaviors to represent different signals in varying contexts. In addition it shows the commonalities that exist between animals of different species.
In conclusion this is a pretty significant breakthrough that should be looked into further. Not only does it propose a new idea about dolphin communicative behavior, but it also shows that complex language made up of short behavioral units is not just a human trait. This could lead scientists to more similarities making it easier to understand how species rearrange their intricate signals, which in turn could aid in discovering the meanings of these behavioral cues as well.
Jackie Connolly (1)
This is a very interesting find! It only makes sense that the most advanced mammals (humans and dolphins being two of those) would have adapted an energy-efficient way of communicating. In terms of verbal communication in dolphins, were short sounds/calls/words (?) used in various contexts and thus had overlapping meanings? How was this determined?
ReplyDeleteWhat non-verbal forms of communication were exhibited in dolphins that also supported this energy-efficient mode of communication?
Great post!
Posted by Ashley Paon
I agree this post is very interesting. I have heard that the dolphin and human brain are very similar-almost identical which would explain both of our species adapting an energy efficient way of communicating. I am interested on the type of communication the dolphins use. What non-vocal communication do they use? It would be interesting to learn the meaning of this communication and see if we can parallel it to anything we do as a human species. What is the "law of brevity" that you refer to? Is there evidence of this law in species outside of dolphins and humans - monkeys or apes, maybe?
ReplyDeletePosted by Tiffany Mallet
This is amazing! I am wondering what these ways of communication were, more specifically. Do you think, or know of, any studies that will be condcuted on other mammals (or animals) knowing this new information? Also, I have the same question Tiffany does about "the law of brevity." Can you explain this further?
ReplyDeleteNice post! I can't wait to find out more info
Posted by Alyson Paige
Thanks for the comments; I will do my best to answer all your questions. As far as variant meaning within verbal communication I am unsure. This article only focused on non vocal behaviors. The only conformation in the article that could give us some clues to this is as follows. As explained by Sohn, dolphins tend to have a repertoire of 30 non vocal behaviors. In addition she tells her readers that dolphins use a ‘side flip’ so get the group of dolphins they are with to stop what they are doing. She continues to say that these side flips are sometimes in succession to portray the same idea. Determination of these attributes was through observation of single units of each behavior. By breaking down these behaviors scientists could observe and record how often each behavioral unit occurred (I am assuming through ethograms but it is not specified).
ReplyDeleteAs far as dolphin-human brain similarities it mostly has to do with size. As explained in the article humans and dolphins diverged from one another (on an evolutionary scale) about 65 million years ago, which is why such similarities to communication processes are so astounding.
This ‘Law of Brevity’ ( brevity, meaning short) is something that exists in all human languages ( so all types of human verbal communication) and simply refers to the fact that humans will use shorter words more often, as opposed to complex words, to communicate efficiently
Additional studies of brevity in other mammals have been made, but as Sohn states “Untill now scientists had not documented the law of brevity in other species,” of course with the exception of humans. But as explained in commentary from a behaviorist, Brenda McCowan, more species probably share this trait and experiments have not been able to break down the units correctly to observe it.
Hope this made some things clearer, thanks again for the great questions.
Posted by Jackie Connolly