Monkeys, just like humans, dolphins and elephants, communicate by calling each other with specific names. A group of researchers from the Safra Center for Brain Sciences at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem discovered this, having found this particular ability in mamorset monkeys: primates have shown that they can identify each other through vocal labels. Their language code is the “phee call”, through which these monkeys get in touch.
Monkeys who call each other by name
The study, published in the journal Science, highlights the advanced cognitive ability of marmosets to recognize and communicate with each other. Researchers David Omer and Guy Oren hypothesize that this evolution in vocal tagging arose from the need to help each other stay in touch in their natural habitat: the rainforest.
According to experts, it was precisely the hostile environment that pushed the small primates to communicate so accurately. The marmoset is more inclined to respond correctly if the “word” is addressed directly to it. And not only that: these monkeys are able to modulate the emission of sounds based on the specimen with which they are communicating. “These similarities suggest that they faced evolutionary social challenges comparable to our early ancestors – explained researcher David Omer – which may have led them to develop similar methods of communication”.