Mammalian vocal communication as a model for human language; from genes and brains to behaviour

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Our ability to communicate via spoken language requires a complex skill set built upon cognitive and physiological processes. I aim to discover the biological bases of language related skills and understand how they unite to create the sophisticated social communication system that is language. Bats present a unique opportunity to shed light on these issues because they are an extraordinary group of animals with intricate social structures and communication abilities. They feature speech and language relevant traits such as vocal learning - the ability to learn new vocalisations, a crucial component of how we learn to speak. However this potential has rarely been exploited. My goal is to use bat models to understand the biological encoding of social-vocal communication abilities. By comparing these findings with other mammals and with humans, it will be possible to shed light on mechanisms by which human language evolved.Specifically, I will explore the behavioural abilities that bats have to learn new vocalisations in a social context, and compare this with other vocal learning mammals (e.g. seals, dolphins). I will investigate the neurobiological, genetic, and genomic factors contributing to these abilities. And I will integrate findings from human language disorder studies to identify parallels between the mechanisms that allow these social-vocal communicative behaviours in bats and other mammals, to those that underscore human language abilities and evolution.