Animal

Communication
By :
Beverly Britto
Dwayne Coelho

What is animal
communication?

Animal communication is any

transfer of information on the part of
one or more animals that has an effect
on the current or future behaviour of
another animal.
When animals communicate to their
audience, they have a clear intention
and reference, and the signal can be
understood away from the physical
object that it refers to.
The study of animal communication
sometimes called zoosemiotics

Why is communication
needed?

Attracts (especially
mates)
repel (especially
competitors or
enemies)

signal aggression
or submission

advertise species

warn of
predators

communicate about the

environment or the
availability of food

Such signals may be:1. instinctive, that is

genetically
programmed
2. learnt from others

Types Of Animal
Communication
1.Chemical signals (used by some very simple
creatures, including protozoa) using pheromones
2.Touch
3.Visual signals (eg. feathers)
4.Sound (Olfactory)

Chemical
signals

Many animals use chemical communication or pheromones to

communicate. They may leave their scent to mark territory or attract
mates. They often use smell to find prey and identify other animals
Pheromones are chemical substances which may be secreted in urine,
dung or produced by special glands.
Examples
1. Sharks have a particularly efficient sense of smell and some
species can detect drops of blood in the ocean at a range of about
one mile.
2. Snakes have the most unusual means of detecting scents. They use
their tongue to pick up scent particles in the air. Having flicked out
its tongue the snake then returns it to a special organ in the roof
of the mouth which analyses the scents collected.

Touch
Although perhaps not as important or widespread as sound,
scent or sight, a number of animals make use of touch in order to
communicate their feelings to other of their kind.
Examples
1. Apes and monkeys will also hug and 'kiss' on meeting,
although in certain species of monkey the visiting or newly
arrived monkey will place its hand in the mouth of the
monkey it is greeting. After a few moments the hand is
withdrawn and the other monkey will place its hand in the
mouth of the visitor. This appears to be a sign of trust and
goodwill between monkeys.
2. Big cats tend to nuzzle each other, as do rhinos and many

Visual Signals
Visual signals may take the form of gestures and display, facial grimaces,
body posture or mimicry. The extravagant display of the peacock or lyre bird
can make the strutting of a wood pigeon seem ineffective and yet each
species has its own way of using visual communication to the best
advantage.
1. Gestures : The attitude of the tail when two wolves meet will indicate
which of the two is
the superior.
2. Display : The male rabbit will use the white underside of its tail to attract
the attention of a female
3. Facial grimaces : The frown of a rhesus monkey is a clear sign of unease,
whereas the raised eyebrow and fluttering eyelid denotes friendship or
pleasure.
4. Body posture : The bee repeatedly walks in a figure 8 motion while
shaking its abdomen. The direction and waggle duration corresponds to
the direction and distance to the food from the hive.
5. Mimicry : Many caterpillars through their coloration take on the

Sound (Olfactory)
If the olfactory signs are the most common form of
communication among animals the acoustic signals must surely
be the next in line, as animals of all kinds rely to a great extent
on their hearing ability in order to succeed and survive.
Examples
1. Among mammals, generally speaking, small animals
squeak (eg. Hamsters) and large ones rumble (eg.
Elephants). The reason for this is that the smaller the
animal's head, the higher the frequency of sound it can
receive and transmit.
2. Grasshoppers and crickets create sound by 'fiddling' - a
process which consists of rubbing the hind legs over the
ribs of the forewings.
3. The rattlesnake gives a distinctly audible and sinister

SOCIAL
BEHAVIOUR

What is Social Behavio

Different types of behavior evolved in animals

because the behaviors helped them survive
or reproduce. In many species, animals live
together in a close-knit group with other
members of their species. Such a group is
referred to as a society. Animals that live in
a society are known as social animals. They
live and work together for the good of the
group. This is called cooperation. Generally,
each member of the group has a specific role
that it plays in the society
Social behaviour is defined by interaction, not
by how organisms are distributed in space.
Clumping of individuals is not a requirement
for social behaviour, although it does increase
opportunities for interaction.
Example : When a lone female moth emits a
bouquet of pheromones to attract male
potential mates, she is engaging in social
behaviour

Who was Dian

Fossey?
Dr. Dian Fosseys life was marked by

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many challenges and successes.

Fossey, whom Rwandans knew as
Nyiramachabelli "the woman who
lives alone on the mountain" is
remembered throughout the world
for her heroic struggle to preserve,
protect and study the mountain
gorilla. As founder of the Digit Fund
(later renamed the Dian Fossey
Gorilla Fund International), her firm
commitment to wildlife
preservation, especially that of the
mountain gorilla, resulted in a truly
remarkable career that spanned two

Dian Fosseys Research 1960s

1980s Rwanda
Aim :
1. Opposition to poaching
2. Opposition to tourism
3. Preservation of habitat
She lived among the mountain gorillas for nearly 20 years
keeping detailed journals to record everything she observed,
and forging close relationships with individual gorillas as she
gained their trust. She shared her thoughts and the results of
her findings with the world, teaching us that gorillas are not
monsters but social beings full of curiosity and affection.
She found that imitating their behavior towards each other,
she was partly expected into the group. She was also able to
work out the meaning of their communication skills and she
was the first person to understand how the gorilla society

Who was Jane Goodall?

Born on April 3, 1934, in
London, England, Jane Goodall
set out to Tanzania to study
wild chimpanzees by sitting
amongst them, bypassing
more rigid procedures and
uncovering discoveries about
primate behavior that have
continued to shape scientific
discourse. She is a highly
respected member of the
world scientific community

To achieve global peace, we must not only

stop fighting each other, but also stop
destroying the natural world.- Jane Goodall

Jane Goodalls
Research
What she discovered:
1. She witnessed a creature, other than a
human, in the act not just of using a tool
but of making one
2. They experienced adolescence, developed
powerful mother-and-child bonds, and
used political chicanery to get what they
wanted. They also made war, wiping out
members of their own species with almost
genocidal brutality on one occasion that

THE END