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Perrier L, de Witasse Thézy A, Pradeau A, Schradin C, Greenfield MD, Mathevon N, Levréro F. A cooperatively breeding mouse shows flexible use of its vocal repertoire according to social context. Behav Brain Res 2025; 486:115575. [PMID: 40187690 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbr.2025.115575] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/19/2024] [Revised: 03/14/2025] [Accepted: 04/02/2025] [Indexed: 04/07/2025]
Abstract
Mice exchange information using chemical, visual and acoustic signals. Long ignored, mouse ultrasonic communication is now considered to be an important aspect of their social life, transferring information such as individual identity or stress levels. However, whether and how mice modulate their acoustic communications is largely unknown. Here we show that the cooperatively breeding African striped mouse Rhabdomys pumilio controls its vocal production both qualitatively and quantitatively, depending on naturally relevant social context. By conducting controlled experiments in captivity, we found a vocal repertoire consisting of seven vocalisation types, which it uses differently depending on different types of social interactions. Familiar individuals of the same or different sex vocalise more than two unfamiliar same-sex individuals. The greatest diversity of vocalisations was recorded during the encounter between an unfamiliar female and male, suggesting that certain vocalisations are mainly used for courtship. Our results highlight that familiar mice may alternate their vocalisations while unfamiliar individuals tend to overlap one another. These observations suggest that African striped mice control the production and temporal dynamics of their vocalisations, addressing targeted information to specific receivers via the acoustic channel.
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Affiliation(s)
- Léo Perrier
- ENES Bioacoustics Research Laboratory, CRNL, CNRS, Inserm, University of Saint-Etienne, Saint-Etienne, France.
| | - Aude de Witasse Thézy
- ENES Bioacoustics Research Laboratory, CRNL, CNRS, Inserm, University of Saint-Etienne, Saint-Etienne, France
| | - Aurélie Pradeau
- ENES Bioacoustics Research Laboratory, CRNL, CNRS, Inserm, University of Saint-Etienne, Saint-Etienne, France
| | - Carsten Schradin
- Université de Strasbourg, CNRS, IPHC UMR 7178, Strasbourg F-67000, France; School of Animal, Plant & Environmental Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Private Bag 3, WITS 2050, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | - Michael D Greenfield
- ENES Bioacoustics Research Laboratory, CRNL, CNRS, Inserm, University of Saint-Etienne, Saint-Etienne, France; Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS 66045, USA
| | - Nicolas Mathevon
- ENES Bioacoustics Research Laboratory, CRNL, CNRS, Inserm, University of Saint-Etienne, Saint-Etienne, France; Institut universitaire de France, France; Ecole Pratique des Hautes Etudes, CHArt Lab, PSL University, France
| | - Florence Levréro
- ENES Bioacoustics Research Laboratory, CRNL, CNRS, Inserm, University of Saint-Etienne, Saint-Etienne, France; Institut universitaire de France, France
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2
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Badihi G, Graham KE, Grund C, Safryghin A, Soldati A, Donnellan E, Hashimoto C, Mine JG, Piel AK, Stewart F, Slocombe KE, Wilke C, Townsend SW, Zuberbühler K, Zulberti C, Hobaiter C. Chimpanzee gestural exchanges share temporal structure with human language. Curr Biol 2024; 34:R673-R674. [PMID: 39043136 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2024.06.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/28/2024] [Revised: 06/04/2024] [Accepted: 06/05/2024] [Indexed: 07/25/2024]
Abstract
Humans regularly engage in efficient communicative conversations, which serve to socially align individuals1. In conversations, we take fast-paced turns using a human-universal structure of deploying and receiving signals which shows consistent timing across cultures2. We report here that chimpanzees also engage in rapid signal-to-signal turn-taking during face-to-face gestural exchanges with a similar average latency between turns to that of human conversation. This correspondence between human and chimpanzee face-to-face communication points to shared underlying rules in communication. These structures could be derived from shared ancestral mechanisms or convergent strategies that enhance coordinated interactions or manage competition for communicative 'space'.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gal Badihi
- School of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of St Andrews, St Andrews KY16 9JP, UK.
| | - Kirsty E Graham
- Department of Psychology, Hunter College, CUNY, New York, NY 10065, USA
| | - Charlotte Grund
- School of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of St Andrews, St Andrews KY16 9JP, UK
| | - Alexandra Safryghin
- School of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of St Andrews, St Andrews KY16 9JP, UK
| | - Adrian Soldati
- Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, University of Zürich, Zürich 8032, Switzerland
| | - Ed Donnellan
- Department of Psychology, University of Warwick, Coventry CV4 7EQ, UK
| | - Chie Hashimoto
- Wildlife Research Center, Kyoto University, Inuyama 484-8506, Japan
| | - Joseph G Mine
- Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, University of Zürich, Zürich 8032, Switzerland; Centre for the Interdisciplinary Study of Language Evolution, University of Zurich, Zurich 8050, Switzerland
| | - Alex K Piel
- Department of Anthropology, University College London, London WC1H 0BW, UK; Department of Human Origins, Max Planck Institute of Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig 04103, Germany
| | - Fiona Stewart
- Department of Anthropology, University College London, London WC1H 0BW, UK; Department of Human Origins, Max Planck Institute of Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig 04103, Germany
| | | | - Claudia Wilke
- Department of Psychology, University of York, York YO10 5DD, UK
| | - Simon W Townsend
- Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, University of Zürich, Zürich 8032, Switzerland; Department of Psychology, University of Warwick, Coventry CV4 7EQ, UK; Centre for the Interdisciplinary Study of Language Evolution, University of Zurich, Zurich 8050, Switzerland
| | - Klaus Zuberbühler
- School of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of St Andrews, St Andrews KY16 9JP, UK; Institute of Biology, University of Neuchâtel, Neuchâtel 2000, Switzerland
| | - Chiara Zulberti
- Institute of Biology, University of Leipzig, Leipzig 04103, Germany
| | - Catherine Hobaiter
- School of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of St Andrews, St Andrews KY16 9JP, UK
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3
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Dingemanse M, Enfield NJ. Interactive repair and the foundations of language. Trends Cogn Sci 2024; 28:30-42. [PMID: 37852803 DOI: 10.1016/j.tics.2023.09.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/08/2023] [Revised: 08/16/2023] [Accepted: 09/15/2023] [Indexed: 10/20/2023]
Abstract
The robustness and flexibility of human language is underpinned by a machinery of interactive repair. Repair is deeply intertwined with two core properties of human language: reflexivity (it can communicate about itself) and accountability (it is used to publicly enforce social norms). We review empirical and theoretical advances from across the cognitive sciences that mark interactive repair as a domain of pragmatic universals, a key place to study metacognition in interaction, and a system that enables collective computation. This provides novel insights into the role of repair in comparative cognition, language development, and human-computer interaction. As an always-available fallback option and an infrastructure for negotiating social commitments, interactive repair is foundational to the resilience, complexity, and flexibility of human language.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mark Dingemanse
- Centre for Language Studies, Radboud University, Nijmegen, The Netherlands.
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Gallo A, De Moura Lima A, Böye M, Hausberger M, Lemasson A. Study of repertoire use reveals unexpected context-dependent vocalizations in bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus). THE SCIENCE OF NATURE - NATURWISSENSCHAFTEN 2023; 110:56. [PMID: 38060031 DOI: 10.1007/s00114-023-01884-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/26/2023] [Revised: 11/17/2023] [Accepted: 11/20/2023] [Indexed: 12/08/2023]
Abstract
Dolphins are known for their complex vocal communication, not least because of their capacity for acoustic plasticity. Paradoxically, we know little about their capacity for flexible vocal use. The difficulty in describing the behaviours performed underwater while vocalizing makes it difficult to analyse the contexts of emissions. Dolphins' main vocal categories are typically considered to be used for scanning the environment (clicks), agonistic encounters (burst pulses) and socio-affiliative interactions (whistles). Dolphins can also combine these categories in mixed vocal emissions, whose use remains unclear. To better understand how vocalizations are used, we simultaneously recorded vocal production and the associated behaviours by conducting underwater observations (N = 479 events) on a group of 7 bottlenose dolphins under human care. Our results showed a non-random association between vocal categories and behavioural contexts. Precisely, clicks were preferentially emitted during affiliative interactions and not during other social/solitary contexts, supporting a possible complementary communicative function. Burst pulses were associated to high arousal contexts (agonistic and social play), pinpointing on their use as an "emotively charged" signal. Whistles were related to solitary swimming and not preferentially produced in any social context. This questions whistles' functions and supports their potential role as a distant contact call. Finally, mixed vocalizations were especially found associated with sexual (bust pulse-whistle-click), solitary play (burst pulse-whistle) and affiliative (click-whistle) behaviours. Depending on the case, their emission seems to confirm, modify or refine the functions of their simple counterparts. These results open up new avenues of research into the contextual use of dolphin acoustic signals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alessandro Gallo
- Laboratoire d'Ethologie Animale Et Humaine, Université de Rennes, Université de Caen-Normandie, UMR 6552, Rennes, France.
- UMR 8002, Integrative Center for Neuroscience and Cognition, Université de Paris Cité, Paris, France.
- Centre de Recherche Et d'Études Pour L'Animal Sauvage (CREAS), Port Saint Père, France.
| | - Alice De Moura Lima
- Laboratoire d'Ethologie Animale Et Humaine, Université de Rennes, Université de Caen-Normandie, UMR 6552, Rennes, France
- Centre de Recherche Et d'Études Pour L'Animal Sauvage (CREAS), Port Saint Père, France
| | - Martin Böye
- Centre de Recherche Et d'Études Pour L'Animal Sauvage (CREAS), Port Saint Père, France
| | - Martine Hausberger
- UMR 8002, Integrative Center for Neuroscience and Cognition, Université de Paris Cité, Paris, France
- Department of Zoology and Entomology, Rhodes University, Grahamstown, South Africa
| | - Alban Lemasson
- Laboratoire d'Ethologie Animale Et Humaine, Université de Rennes, Université de Caen-Normandie, UMR 6552, Rennes, France
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McCowan B, Hubbard J, Walker L, Sharpe F, Frediani J, Doyle L. Interactive bioacoustic playback as a tool for detecting and exploring nonhuman intelligence: "conversing" with an Alaskan humpback whale. PeerJ 2023; 11:e16349. [PMID: 38047015 PMCID: PMC10693240 DOI: 10.7717/peerj.16349] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/09/2023] [Accepted: 10/04/2023] [Indexed: 12/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Here we report on a rare and opportunistic acoustic turn-taking with an adult female humpback whale, known as Twain, in Southeast Alaska. Post hoc acoustic and statistical analyses of a 20-min acoustic exchange between the broadcast of a recorded contact call, known as a 'whup/throp', with call responses by Twain revealed an intentional human-whale acoustic (and behavioral) interaction. Our results show that Twain participated both physically and acoustically in three phases of interaction (Phase 1: Engagement, Phase 2: Agitation, Phase 3: Disengagement), independently determined by blind observers reporting on surface behavior and respiratory activity of the interacting whale. A close examination of both changes to the latency between Twain's calls and the temporal matching to the latency of the exemplar across phases indicated that Twain was actively engaged in the exchange during Phase 1 (Engagement), less so during Phase 2 (Agitation), and disengaged during Phase 3 (Disengagement). These results, while preliminary, point to several key considerations for effective playback design, namely the importance of salient, dynamic and adaptive playbacks, that should be utilized in experimentation with whales and other interactive nonhuman species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Brenda McCowan
- SVM: Population Health and Reproduction, University of California, Davis, Davis, California, United States
| | - Josephine Hubbard
- Animal Behavior Graduate Group, University of California, Davis, Davis, California, United States
| | - Lisa Walker
- Grooved Whale Project, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
| | - Fred Sharpe
- Alaska Whale Foundation, Petersburg, Alaska, United States
| | - Jodi Frediani
- Jodi Frediani Photography, Santa Cruz, California, United States
| | - Laurance Doyle
- SETI Institute, Mountain View, California, United States
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Watson SK, Mine JG, O’Neill LG, Mueller JL, Russell AF, Townsend SW. Cognitive constraints on vocal combinatoriality in a social bird. iScience 2023; 26:106977. [PMID: 37332672 PMCID: PMC10275715 DOI: 10.1016/j.isci.2023.106977] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/20/2022] [Revised: 11/29/2022] [Accepted: 05/24/2023] [Indexed: 06/20/2023] Open
Abstract
A critical component of language is the ability to recombine sounds into larger structures. Although animals also reuse sound elements across call combinations to generate meaning, examples are generally limited to pairs of distinct elements, even when repertoires contain sufficient sounds to generate hundreds of combinations. This combinatoriality might be constrained by the perceptual-cognitive demands of disambiguating between complex sound sequences that share elements. We test this hypothesis by probing the capacity of chestnut-crowned babblers to process combinations of two versus three distinct acoustic elements. We found babblers responded quicker and for longer toward playbacks of recombined versus familiar bi-element sequences, but no evidence of differential responses toward playbacks of recombined versus familiar tri-element sequences, suggesting a cognitively prohibitive jump in processing demands. We propose that overcoming constraints in the ability to process increasingly complex combinatorial signals was necessary for the productive combinatoriality that is characteristic of language to emerge.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stuart K. Watson
- Department of Comparative Language Science, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
- Department of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
- Center for the Interdisciplinary Study of Language Evolution, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Joseph G. Mine
- Department of Comparative Language Science, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
- Center for the Interdisciplinary Study of Language Evolution, Zurich, Switzerland
- Faculty of Environment, Science and Economy, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall TR10 9FE, UK
| | - Louis G. O’Neill
- Faculty of Environment, Science and Economy, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall TR10 9FE, UK
- Department of Biological Sciences, Macquarie University, North Ryde, NSW 2109 Australia
- Fowlers Gap Arid Zone Research Station, School of Biological, Earth & Environmental Sciences, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW 2052, Australia
| | | | - Andrew F. Russell
- Faculty of Environment, Science and Economy, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall TR10 9FE, UK
- Institute of Linguistics, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
- Fowlers Gap Arid Zone Research Station, School of Biological, Earth & Environmental Sciences, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW 2052, Australia
| | - Simon W. Townsend
- Department of Comparative Language Science, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
- Center for the Interdisciplinary Study of Language Evolution, Zurich, Switzerland
- Department of Psychology, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK
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Meunier B, Durier V, Giacalone A, Coye C, Lemasson A. Social factors drive vocal exchanges in red-capped mangabeys (Cercocebus torquatus). THE SCIENCE OF NATURE - NATURWISSENSCHAFTEN 2023; 110:2. [PMID: 36651987 DOI: 10.1007/s00114-023-01830-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/30/2022] [Revised: 01/04/2023] [Accepted: 01/06/2023] [Indexed: 01/19/2023]
Abstract
Of all the calls made by non-human primates, the function of short-distance contact calls has largely remained to be determined. These calls are the most frequent in the repertoire and are most often exchanged between individuals in a non-random way. To our knowledge, no study has ever examined how vocal exchanges are structured in red-capped mangabeys (Cercocebus torquatus), a semi-terrestrial monkey living in the African forest with a complex semi-tolerant/semi-despotic social system. Our goal was to assess the organization of contact call exchanges in this species and their relationship with individual and social factors such as age, affinity, and hierarchy. Therefore, we observed several captive groups of red-capped mangabeys and collected data on vocal behavior, as well as grooming, agonistic behavior, and spatial proximity. We defined a vocal exchange in this species as a series of contact calls made by two or more individuals within a maximum inter-caller interval of 2 s. At the individual level, the higher the individual's hierarchical rank, the less they initiated exchanges. Furthermore, the most socially integrated individuals had a longer average response time than the less integrated ones. At the dyadic level, preferred exchange partners were individuals often observed near one other or individuals most distant in age. Also, the further apart two individuals were in the dominance hierarchy, the shorter the response time. Our results support both the social bonding hypothesis and a modulating key role of the dominance hierarchy on the social use of contact calls, which is in line with the social style of this species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bastien Meunier
- Université de Rennes, Université de Normandie, CNRS, EthoS (Ethologie animale et humaine) - U.M.R 6552, F-35000, Rennes, France.
| | - Virginie Durier
- Université de Rennes, Université de Normandie, CNRS, EthoS (Ethologie animale et humaine) - U.M.R 6552, F-35000, Rennes, France
| | - Aline Giacalone
- Université de Rennes, Université de Normandie, CNRS, EthoS (Ethologie animale et humaine) - U.M.R 6552, F-35000, Rennes, France
| | - Camille Coye
- Université de Rennes, Université de Normandie, CNRS, EthoS (Ethologie animale et humaine) - U.M.R 6552, F-35000, Rennes, France.,Institut jean Nicod, Département d'études cognitives, ENS, EHESS, CNRS, PSL University, 75005, Paris, France
| | - Alban Lemasson
- Université de Rennes, Université de Normandie, CNRS, EthoS (Ethologie animale et humaine) - U.M.R 6552, F-35000, Rennes, France.,Institut Universitaire de France 1 rue Descartes, Cedex 05, 75231, Paris, France
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Abreu F, Pika S. Turn-taking skills in mammals: A systematic review into development and acquisition. Front Ecol Evol 2022. [DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2022.987253] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/04/2022] Open
Abstract
How human language evolved remains one of the most intriguing questions in science, and different approaches have been used to tackle this question. A recent hypothesis, the Interaction Engine Hypothesis, postulates that language was made possible through the special capacity for social interaction involving different social cognitive skills (e.g., joint attention, common ground) and specific characteristics such as face-to-face interaction, mutual gaze and turn-taking, the exchange of rapid communicative turns. Recently, it has been argued that this turn-taking infrastructure may be a foundational and ancient mechanism of the layered system of language because communicative turn-taking has been found in human infants and across several non-human primate species. Moreover, there is some evidence for turn-taking in different mammalian taxa, especially those capable of vocal learning. Surprisingly, however, the existing studies have mainly focused on turn-taking production of adult individuals, while little is known about its emergence and development in young individuals. Hence, the aim of the current paper was 2-fold: First, we carried out a systematic review of turn-taking development and acquisition in mammals to evaluate possible research bias and existing gaps. Second, we highlight research avenues to spur more research into this domain and investigate if distinct turn-taking elements can be found in other non-human animal species. Since mammals exhibit an extended development period, including learning and strong parental care, they represent an excellent model group in which to investigate the acquisition and development of turn-taking abilities. We performed a systematic review including a wide range of terms and found 21 studies presenting findings on turn-taking abilities in infants and juveniles. Most of these studies were from the last decade, showing an increased interest in this field over the years. Overall, we found a considerable variation in the terminologies and methodological approaches used. In addition, studies investigating turn-taking abilities across different development periods and in relation to different social partners were very rare, thereby hampering direct, systematic comparisons within and across species. Nonetheless, the results of some studies suggested that specific turn-taking elements are innate, while others are acquired during development (e.g., flexibility). Finally, we pinpoint fruitful research avenues and hypotheses to move the field of turn-taking development forward and improve our understanding of the impact of turn-taking on language evolution.
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Briseño-Jaramillo M, Sosa-López JR, Ramos-Fernández G, Lemasson A. Flexible use of contact calls in a species with high fission-fusion dynamics. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2022; 377:20210309. [PMID: 35934970 PMCID: PMC9358324 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2021.0309] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/31/2021] [Accepted: 05/05/2022] [Indexed: 01/13/2023] Open
Abstract
The 'social complexity hypothesis' posits that complex social systems (which entail high uncertainty) require complex communicative systems (with high vocal flexibility). In species with fission-fusion dynamics, where the fluid composition of temporary subgroups increases the uncertainty with which group members must manage their social relationships, vocal communication must be particularly flexible. This study assessed whether contact call rates vary with caller and audience characteristics in free-living spider monkeys, as well as with fission and fusion events. Adult females and immature individuals called more when in small audience settings, while audience size did not influence adult males. Adults called more when in the presence of the opposite sex, whereas immatures vocalized more in subgroups composed only by females. Females also called more when with their mature sons. We found higher call rates in periods during which fission and fusion events took place than in periods with more stable compositions and when the composition after a fission or fusion event changed from one sex to two sexes. A flexible use of contact calls allows individuals to identify themselves when they join others, particularly if they are members of the opposite sex. This socio-spatial cohesion function reduces the uncertainty about subgroup composition. This article is part of the theme issue 'Cognition, communication and social bonds in primates'.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - José Roberto Sosa-López
- Centro Interdisciplinario de Investigación para el Desarrollo Integral Regional Unidad Oaxaca (CIIDIR), Instituto Politécnico Nacional, Oaxaca, México
| | - Gabriel Ramos-Fernández
- Instituto de Investigaciones en Matemáticas Aplicadas y en Sistemas, Instituto Politécnico Nacional, Oaxaca, México
- Centro de Ciencias de la Complejidad, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Ciudad de México, México
| | - Alban Lemasson
- Univ Rennes, Normandie Univ, CNRS, Ethologie Animale et Humaine, U.M.R. 6552 - EthoS, Rennes 35000, France
- Institut Universitaire de France, Paris, France
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Haiduk F, Fitch WT. Understanding Design Features of Music and Language: The Choric/Dialogic Distinction. Front Psychol 2022; 13:786899. [PMID: 35529579 PMCID: PMC9075586 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2022.786899] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/30/2021] [Accepted: 02/22/2022] [Indexed: 12/03/2022] Open
Abstract
Music and spoken language share certain characteristics: both consist of sequences of acoustic elements that are combinatorically combined, and these elements partition the same continuous acoustic dimensions (frequency, formant space and duration). However, the resulting categories differ sharply: scale tones and note durations of small integer ratios appear in music, while speech uses phonemes, lexical tone, and non-isochronous durations. Why did music and language diverge into the two systems we have today, differing in these specific features? We propose a framework based on information theory and a reverse-engineering perspective, suggesting that design features of music and language are a response to their differential deployment along three different continuous dimensions. These include the familiar propositional-aesthetic ('goal') and repetitive-novel ('novelty') dimensions, and a dialogic-choric ('interactivity') dimension that is our focus here. Specifically, we hypothesize that music exhibits specializations enhancing coherent production by several individuals concurrently-the 'choric' context. In contrast, language is specialized for exchange in tightly coordinated turn-taking-'dialogic' contexts. We examine the evidence for our framework, both from humans and non-human animals, and conclude that many proposed design features of music and language follow naturally from their use in distinct dialogic and choric communicative contexts. Furthermore, the hybrid nature of intermediate systems like poetry, chant, or solo lament follows from their deployment in the less typical interactive context.
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Affiliation(s)
- Felix Haiduk
- Department of Behavioral and Cognitive Biology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - W. Tecumseh Fitch
- Department of Behavioral and Cognitive Biology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
- Vienna Cognitive Science Hub, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
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