1. ANIMAL LANGUAGE
COMMUNICATION
Group Members:
Ahsen Aamir Murad
Jawaria Hameed
Kanza Afzal
Saad Nasir Chandna
Presented to:
Dr. Zeenat Ismael
Dated : 25th November 2010

2. Communication
 “Communication consists of exchanges of
information between a sender and a
receiver using a code of specific signals
that usually serve to meet common
challenges (reproduction, feeding,
protection) and, in group-living species, to
promote cohesiveness of the group.”
(Vauclair,1996)

3. Characteristics of language
 interchangeability
 specialization
 discreteness
 arbitrariness of units
 displacement
 semanticity
 productivity
 traditional (cultural) transmission

4. Concept of animal
communication
 Without question, nonhuman
animals DO communicate.
 Most species send signals,
issue warnings, respond to
threats, share the location for
food etc.
 While a concept of
communication is too broad,
a concept of “speech” is too
narrow for considering the
form of information
transferring in animals.

5. Approaches
Three main experimental approaches
have been employed for studying
animals language communication.
 Direct decoding of animals‟
communication
 Use of intermediary languages for
communication with animals.
 Application of ideas and concepts of
information processing theory.

6. First approach
(decoding of animals‟
communication)
 Two types of natural communication
systems have been deciphered till now:
Fragments of honeybees “dance
language”
Acoustic signalization in various species
 The decoded “words” concern alarm
calls, calls for cohesion and signals
about food.
 Honeybees appear to interpret the
meaning of messages they receive.
 The wild acoustic communication does
not meet several important linguistic
criteria such as displacement and
productivity.

7. Second approach
(dialogue with animals)
 An intermediary language
is devised to communicate
with animals in language-
training programs.
 Dialogue with animals has
revealed astonishing
„linguistic potential‟ in
them.
 Properties of developed-
language such as
categorization, creativity
and displacement have
been observed.

9. Third approach
(information processing theory)
 This approach is designed to
study quantitative
characteristics of natural
communicative systems and
important properties of animal
intelligence.
 This approach proves that
ants,like honeybees, are able to
inform their nest mates about
remote events,and their
communication system is rather
rational and flexible.

10. Examples of animal
communication
 Bees dance when they have
found nectar.
 Chimpanzees greet each other
by touching hands.
 Prairie dog calls for four
predators—human, hawk, coyote
and domestic dog by different
vocal signals.
 Rhesus macaques produce five
acoustically distinctive
vocalizations when they find
food.

11. RESEARCH ON ELEPHANT
COMMUNICATION

12. Analysis of animal language
studies
 Non-human animals cannot use language in
ways that are considered unique and they
have a limited range of ideas.
 Comprehension of human language by non-
human animals might just be a result of
operant conditioning. The imitation of
human symbols could only be to achieve
rewards.
 But still current evidence suggests that
animals can learn and use many forms of

13. THE END
Article reference: zhanna reznikova
Journal: Ebcohost
Received: 6 September 2006 / Revised: 22 December
2006 / Accepted: 9 January 2007 / Published online: 3
February 2007
© Springer-Verlag and ISPA 2007