Scientists at the University of St Andrews (Scotland) have shown that dolphins use specific acoustic signals to each other that allow them to make and respond to individual calls. The research sheds new light on the amazing intelligence of these cetaceans, a subject already discussed in previous reports.
The study reveals that dolphins develop a specific whistle that encodes their individual identity and only respond to their peers who imitate their own whistle , taking it as a response to their call. Animals would therefore ignore sounds that they do not reproduce their own. The team says it is an almost human attitude: when they hear his name, they respond.
The species analyzed is the bottlenose dolphin, or Tursiops trucantus , the most common species of this type of cetacean and the most studied because of its surprising ability to learn vocal communication. "These animals live in an environment where they need a very efficient system to keep in contact," says Dr. Vincent Janik, head of the research.
Dolphins are the only mammals other than humans capable of integrating new signals into their own natural communication system. Other research suggests that certain types of birds, such as parrots, also have this ability to tag their congeners.
