Summary: Researchers have discovered that marmoset monkeys use specific vocal calls, known as “phee-calls,” to identify and communicate with each other, a behavior previously observed only in humans, dolphins, and elephants. This ability to label others vocally suggests that marmosets possess advanced cognitive skills in social communication.
The study also found that marmoset families share similar vocal labels, akin to names and dialects in humans. This discovery provides new insights into the evolution of social communication and language.
Key Facts:
- Marmoset monkeys use “phee-calls” to name and address specific individuals, similar to naming in humans.
- The ability to vocally label others was previously seen only in humans, dolphins, and elephants.
- Marmoset families use similar vocal labels and sound features, resembling human names and dialects.
Source: Hebrew University of Jerusalem
In a groundbreaking discovery, researchers from Hebrew University have found that marmoset monkeys use specific vocal calls, called “phee-calls,” to identify and communicate with each other. This ability to vocally label others has only been seen in humans, dolphins, and elephants until now.
Naming of others is a highly advanced cognitive ability observed in social animals and, until recently, was known to exist only in humans, dolphins, and elephants. Interestingly, our closest evolutionary relatives, nonhuman primates, appeared to lack this ability altogether.
In a new study published today in Science, a team of researchers from the Hebrew University, led by Dr. David Omer from the Safra Center for Brain Sciences (ELSC), made a groundbreaking discovery: for the first time, they found that marmoset monkeys use specific calls, called “phee-calls”, to name each other.
To uncover this, the researchers, led by graduate student Guy Oren, recorded natural conversations between pairs of marmosets, as well as interactions between monkeys and a computer system. They found that these monkeys use their “phee-calls” to address specific individuals. Even more interestingly, the marmosets could discern when a call was directed at them and responded more accurately when it was.
“This discovery highlight the complexity of social communication among marmosets,” explains Omer. “These calls are not just used for self-localization, as previously thought— marmosets use these specific calls to label and address specific individuals”.
The study also revealed that family members within a marmoset group use similar vocal labels to address different individuals and employ similar sound features to code different names, resembling the use if names and dialects in humans.
This learning appears to occur even among adult marmosets who are not related by blood, suggesting that they learn both vocal labels and dialect from other members of their family group.
The researchers believe that this vocal labeling may have evolved to help marmosets stay connected in their dense rainforest habitat, where visibility is often limited. By using these calls, they can maintain their social bonds and keep the group cohesive.
“Marmosets live in small monogamous family groups and take care of their young together, much like humans do,” says Omer.
“These similarities suggest that they faced comparable evolutionary social challenges to our early pre-linguistic ancestors, which might have led them to develop similar communicating methods.”
This research provide new insights into how social communication and human language might have evolved. The ability of marmosets to label each other with specific calls suggests they have developed complex brain mechanisms, potentially analogous to those that eventually gave rise to language in humans.
The study opens up exciting avenues for further research into how our own communication abilities may have evolved and what we can learn from these social nonhuman primates.
About this communication and evolutionary neuroscience research news
Author: Yarden Mills
Source: Hebrew University of Jerusalem
Contact: Yarden Mills – Hebrew University of Jerusalem
Image: The image is credited to Neuroscience News
Original Research: Closed access.
“Vocal Labeling of Others by Nonhuman Primates” by David Omer et al. Science
Abstract
Vocal Labeling of Others by Nonhuman Primates
Humans, dolphins, and elephants are the only known species that vocally label their conspecifics. It remains unclear whether nonhuman primates share this ability. We recorded spontaneous “phee-call” dialogues between pairs of marmoset monkeys. We discovered that marmosets use these calls to vocally label their conspecifics.
Moreover, they respond more consistently and correctly to calls that are specifically directed at them. Analysis of calls from multiple monkeys revealed that family members use similar calls and acoustic features to label others and perform vocal learning.
These findings shed light on the complexities of social vocalizations among nonhuman primates and suggest that marmoset vocalizations may provide a model for understanding aspects of human language, thereby offering new insights into the evolution of social communication.
