idw – Informationsdienst Wissenschaft

Nachrichten, Termine, Experten

Grafik: idw-Logo
Science Video Project
idw-Abo

idw-News App:

AppStore

Google Play Store



Instanz:
Teilen: 
08.03.2016 17:00

Bird communication: chirping with syntax

Kurt Bodenmüller Kommunikation
Universität Zürich

    People communicate meaning by combining words according to syntactic rules. But this ability is not limited solely to humans: A group of evolutionary biologists from Tokyo, Uppsala and the University of Zurich have discovered that Japanese great tits, like humans, have also evolved syntax. By combining their various calls using specific rules, these songbirds can communicate specific messages and engage in complex interactions.

    Language is one of the defining characteristics of human beings: It enables us to generate unlimited meanings from a finite number of phonetic elements. Using syntactic rules, humans are able to combine words to form phrases and sentences, and thus ascribe meaning to various things and activities. Research on communication systems suggests that non-human primates and birds, too, have evolved the ability to assign meaning to arbitrary vocal elements. But until now, the evolution of syntax has been considered unique to human language.

    Warning signal plus mating call means “flock together”

    Evolutionary biologists at The Graduate University for Advanced Studies in Japan, the Uppsala University in Sweden and the University of Zurich are now challenging this view. For the first time, these researchers have demonstrated that Japanese great tits (Parus minor) have developed syntactic rules. These small birds are known for their large vocal repertoire, and the team discovered that they use a variety of calls and combinations of calls to interact with one another in specific situations. The combination of sounds such as the “ABC calls”, for instance, means “watch out!”. The great tits use them when a sparrowhawk or another predator is nearby – a potentially dangerous situation. By contrast, “D calls” mean “come over here,” a call the birds use after discovering a new source of food or when wanting their partner to come to the nest.

    Tits frequently combine these two calls into ABC-D calls when, for instance, the birds encounter predators and join forces to deter them. When hearing a recording of these calls played in the natural order of ABC-D, the birds are alarmed and flock together. When, however, the call ordering is artificially reversed to D-ABC, the birds do not respond.

    Generating meaning by combining limited vocabulary

    The researchers have therefore drawn the conclusion that syntax is not unique to human language: It has also evolved independently in birds. “The results lead to a better understanding of the underlying factors in the evolution of syntax. Because the tits combine different calls, they are able to create new meaning with their limited vocabulary. That allows them to trigger different behavioral reactions and coordinate complex social interactions,” says Dr. Michael Griesser, at the Institute of Anthropology at the University of Zurich. He believes these factors may well have contributed to the development of language in humans.

    Literature:
    Toshitaka N. Suzuki, David Wheatcroft, Michael Griesser. Experimental evidence for compositional syntax in bird calls. Nature Communications. March 8, 2016. doi: 10.1038/ncomms10986


    Weitere Informationen:

    http://www.mediadesk.uzh.ch/articles/2016/kohlmeisen-zwitschern-nach-sprachaehnl...


    Bilder

    Japanese great tits communicate according to syntactic rules.
    Japanese great tits communicate according to syntactic rules.
    Image: University of Zurich
    None


    Merkmale dieser Pressemitteilung:
    Journalisten, Wissenschaftler
    Biologie
    überregional
    Forschungsergebnisse, Wissenschaftliche Publikationen
    Englisch


     

    Japanese great tits communicate according to syntactic rules.


    Zum Download

    x

    Hilfe

    Die Suche / Erweiterte Suche im idw-Archiv
    Verknüpfungen

    Sie können Suchbegriffe mit und, oder und / oder nicht verknüpfen, z. B. Philo nicht logie.

    Klammern

    Verknüpfungen können Sie mit Klammern voneinander trennen, z. B. (Philo nicht logie) oder (Psycho und logie).

    Wortgruppen

    Zusammenhängende Worte werden als Wortgruppe gesucht, wenn Sie sie in Anführungsstriche setzen, z. B. „Bundesrepublik Deutschland“.

    Auswahlkriterien

    Die Erweiterte Suche können Sie auch nutzen, ohne Suchbegriffe einzugeben. Sie orientiert sich dann an den Kriterien, die Sie ausgewählt haben (z. B. nach dem Land oder dem Sachgebiet).

    Haben Sie in einer Kategorie kein Kriterium ausgewählt, wird die gesamte Kategorie durchsucht (z.B. alle Sachgebiete oder alle Länder).