Animal Communication
and Language: what’s the difference
between the two? Well, we have been conditioned to believe that there is a big
difference between basic communication and complex language, and an even bigger
difference between animals and humans. Only
humans possess the capability for, and usage of, language is what we’ve always been
told. But not anymore. Over
the last decade, I have come across not only compassionate texts, such as
Elizabeth Hess’ summary of primate language experiments in Nim Chimpsky, but also engaging, informed works such as Con
Slobodchikoff’s Chasing Doctor Dolittle,
which objectively assesses the small amount of research already carried out in Science
into Animal Communication, and shows there are clear indications that it has
been completely underestimated.
‘The
basic question should not be whether animals have or have not human-like
language... having to pass our tests
as measured by our yardsticks...The
real question...is how the animals themselves experience the world and how they
organize this experience and communicate about it.’ Beyond Boundaries: Humans and Animals, Barbara Noske.
Indeed,
language comes in many forms. The intricacies of body language,
even for humans, would substantiate this point right away, especially
considering the complex nature of differing gestures and expressions:
Gestures
come in ‘sentences’ called clusters and invariably reveal the truth about a
person’s feelings or attitudes. The
Definitive Book of Body Language, Allan & Barbara Pease.
Moreover, nature
or nurture theory aside, language is tied up with its usage. Just as the Amazonian Pirahã tribe do not have words for many numbers or ‘internet,’ so
pigeons are not to be judged for lacking the vocabulary to balance a
chequebook. In addition, there is recent Cognitive research which suggests that there is more of
a continuum of communication forms, rather than there being a solid divide
between humans and other animals. Meanwhile,
recent BBC programmes, such as Monkey
Planet and Inside Animal Minds,
as well as articles repeatedly cropping up in newspapers about dolphin
signature whistles, alarm calls by prairie dogs, and the complex structure of bird
communication, along with canine scent-marking, all show a variation of a world we
have yet to discover.
Beyond the
academic, I wanted to get a feel for public opinion too. So I created a short anonymous survey online,
along with emailing a handful of colleagues.
Overwhelmingly positive, out of 44 people so far, 100% of people found
research into animal language to be interesting and worthwhile. Comments
included: ‘As long as they do
not test on or hurt the animals’
‘Sounds fascinating!’
‘I think it's interesting to know more about how
different species communicate, including humans, but I don't see why humans
should be the central point we always want to relate everything to... [it]
might distract from discovering really interesting things if we can be more
open minded about what's there to be discovered. I hope you might be able to do
something about this!’
In
addition, 38.6 % of people would be more likely to support animal charities as
a result of science showing that animals do have language, while the same
percentage would even consider turning vegetarian in response. This was just those who would be positively
influenced by animal language studies.
Already donating were 22.3%, and already vegetarian 20.5%, with a small
percentage of those who ‘don’t know’ in both categories. Those who said ‘no’ absolutely to being
influenced to support organisations or become vegetarian were 17.3% and 31.8%
respectively. This means that a striking
70% or more of all people could be more supportive of animals, and vegetarian, if animals
were shown to possess linguistic ability.
The comments were even more telling:
‘it would actually imply so much that everyone
would have to think about changing their attitudes’
‘Language would
bring a greater closeness to animals’.
And where vegetarianism is
concerned:
‘Might affect which animals I eat though,’
following a ‘no’ response.
‘I’m not vegetarian only because I’m morally
feeble’ also following a ‘no,’ while another ‘no’ stated they suffered when
eating meat supplements, their only barrier to vegetarianism.
If
representative of the UK, and the western world, you can already begin to see
the dramatic effect that this research would have on the world and its
consumers.
And
who doesn’t have their favourite anecdotes about animal behaviour and intelligence? Ones that give us pause to question the
long-held doctrines that animals aren’t smart, and don’t communicate on
anything like the same level of complexity as we humans do? Personally, I loved (cf. Links section at the bottom):
·
the video of the crow snowboarding on a roof;
·
the alligator inspiring Disney to create a water
park with his love of the ski slope-turned-water slide;
·
the dog who took himself and his lead to a
neighbour, knocking on their door, so he could have a walk;
·
dolphins working with humans to fish off the coast
of Brazil;
·
the bear trying out a hammock in Florida;
·
Unlikely
Friendships, Jennifer Holland, with its beautiful photographs of different species bonding with an improbable
buddy;
·
the ethereal majesty of witnessing a wolf pack howl together;
·
hearing about tarantulas who herd their children in
single file across roads in Mexico;
·
not to mention having a pod of seals trail my
family’s footsteps out of curiosity, as we walked the entire coastal path of a
Scottish island.
This
is not to say, by any means, that we shouldn’t be aware, as Cesar Millan – The
Dog Whisperer – eloquently puts it in Cesar’s
Way: that we should not treat animals as ‘humans in dog suits.’ Certainly, if we were shooting for complete
equality, it
would see me filing an anti-social behaviour report against the ‘cute’ squirrel
who regularly vandalises my pot plants!
No,
just as we are ‘only human,’ with our limitations, flaws, and reasons for our
behaviour, so too we will find that other species differ from us in their mode
of living, and greatly at times. But as
we know from any sojourn into history (family or otherwise): different never
means wrong or inferior. It’s just not
what we would have expected. But the
same can be said for any of our greatest discoveries and experiences too. We
now know the world to be round, just as we now know not to judge the foreigner
who does not speak English well, but is quite eloquent in their native
tongue. Animals have
already shown how capable and intriguing they are in their everyday worlds, and in coping with ours. Why should their self-expression and
communication be any different?
