Referential labelling in Diana monkeys

Authors
Citation
K. Zuberbuhler, Referential labelling in Diana monkeys, ANIM BEHAV, 59, 2000, pp. 917-927
Citations number
34
Language
INGLESE
art.tipo
Article
Categorie Soggetti
Animal Sciences","Neurosciences & Behavoir
Journal title
ANIMAL BEHAVIOUR
ISSN journal
0003-3472 → ACNP
Volume
59
Year of publication
2000
Part
5
Pages
917 - 927
Database
ISI
SICI code
0003-3472(200005)59:<917:RLIDM>2.0.ZU;2-O
Abstract
Animal semantic communication has received considerable theoretical and emp irical attention because of its relevance to human language; Advances have been made by studies of alarm-call behaviour in nonhumans. In monkeys, for example, there is evidence that recipients have a fairly sophisticated unde rstanding of a call's meaning; that is, the predator type usually associate d with a certain alarm call. Little is known, however, about the mental mec hanisms that drive call production in nonhuman primates. In some nonprimate species, it has been found that signallers do not respond to a predator's physical features put instead seem to respond to its relative threat or dir ection of attack. In these species, therefore, alarm calls do not denote di fferent predator categories but,simply reflect different types or levels of danger. Because different predator categories;typically impose-different t ypes and degrees of threat it is entirely possible that nonhuman primates a lso respond to threat rather than a predator's category. This study examine d how wild Diana monkeys, Cercopithecus diana, of the Tai forest, Ivory Coa st, label predation events. By altering playback stimuli and the position o f a concealed speaker, I investigated whether Diana monkeys respond with ac oustically different alarm calls depending on a predator's (1) distance (cl ose versus far), (2) elevation (above versus below), or (3) category (eagle versus leopard). Analysis of male and female alarm-call behaviour showed t hat Diana monkeys consistently responded to predator category regardless of immediate threat or direction of attack. Data further suggested that, in a ddition to predator category, monkeys' alarm calls might also convey inform ation about the predator's distance. (C) 2000 The Association for the Study of Animal Behaviour.