(Washington) African elephants call to each other and respond to each other’s names in a way few wild animals do, according to new research published June 10.
Names are part of the low-pitched rumbles that elephants can hear over long distances on the savannah. Scientists believe that animals with complex social structures and family groups that often split up and reunite are more likely to use individual names.
If you’re caring for a large family, you need to be able to say, “Hey, Virginia, come here! “, illustrated Stuart Pimm, an ecologist at Duke University, who did not participate in the study.
It is extremely rare for wild animals to call each other by unique names. Humans have names, of course, and our dogs come when called by name. Baby dolphins make up their own names, called “signature whistles,” and parrots can also use names.
Each of these named species also possesses the ability to learn to pronounce unique new sounds throughout their lives – a rare talent that elephants also possess.
For the study published in Nature Ecology
Researchers followed the elephants in jeeps to observe who called and who seemed to respond – for example, whether a mother called to a baby elephant or a matriarch called to a wanderer who then joined the family group.
Analyzing audio data alone, the computer model predicted which elephant was being spoken to 28 percent of the time, likely due to the inclusion of its name. When fed meaningless data, the model accurately labeled only 8% of calls.
“Just like humans, elephants use names, but they probably don’t do so in the majority of utterances, so we wouldn’t expect 100 percent accuracy,” explained Mickey Pardo, author of the study and biologist at Cornell University.
Elephant rumbles include sounds that are below the range of human hearing. Scientists still don’t know what part of the vocalization makes up the name.
The researchers tested their results by playing recordings to individual elephants, who responded more energetically, flapping their ears and raising their trunks, to recordings containing their name. Sometimes the elephants completely ignored vocalizations directed at others.
“Elephants are incredibly social, talking and touching each other all the time. Naming is likely one of the elements underlying their ability to communicate with individuals, said George Wittemyer, a study co-author and ecologist at Colorado State University who is also an advisor scientist for the non-profit Save the Elephants.
“We have just cracked open the door to the elephants’ minds. »
