Comparative Studies of Primate Vocal Communication

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In this decade, research has revealed rudimentary but intriguing similarities between certain aspects of human language and the vocal communication of monkeys living in social groups. There are parallels in categorical perception of primate calls and speech, in some of the functions of calls and words, and even in the neural structures involved in the control and production of speech and monkey calls. Several recent studies have suggested that there may be developmental affinities as well. For example, infants and juveniles apparently require experience for both production and proper contextual usage of calls that effectively represent objects or events in their external environments. Complexity in the vocal communication of macaque monkeys is the theme of research by Drs. Harold and Sarah Gouzoules. In previous work on two species of macaques, the Gouzouleses found that acoustically distinct types of recruitment screams are associated with specific features of the situation (e.g., the relative dominance rank of an opponent and the severity of the attack) and appear to provide allies with information pertinent to decisions about intervention tactics. The Gouzouleses now are investigating the acquisition of communicative competence by young macaques and the question of species differences in the acoustic features of calls used in similar contexts. Vocalizations and concomitant behavioral data will be collected on three groups of monkeys (representing three macaque species) maintained in large outdoor enclosures at the Yerkes Regional Primate Research Center of Emory University. The Gouzouleses' novel approach to the analysis of the developmental modification of vocal behavior employs a multivariate statistical technique (discriminant analysis) and a battery of two dozen acoustic measurements to assess differences between adults, juveniles, and infants.