An Analysis of Animal Communication: Is it a Form of Language?

This essay delves into the realm of animal communication, investigating whether it can be classified as a language. It begins by defining communication and its significance in expressing ideas and thoughts, highlighting that it encompasses more than just words, including actions, gestures, and expressions. The essay explores the reasons behind animal communication, such as caring for offspring, coordinating behavior, defending territory, and attracting mates. It then tackles the central question of whether animal communication constitutes a language, discussing research and examples like chimpanzees using lexigrams and bees employing dance to convey information. The essay further categorizes different types of animal communication, including vocalizations, non-vocal noises, smell, color changes, and visual displays, offering examples for each. The essay concludes by referencing Hockett's design features of language and how they apply to animals. The provided references include books and journals, offering further insight into the topic.

Can Animal Communication
be considered a Language

Table of Contents.
INTRODUCTION................................................................................................................................3
CONCLUSION....................................................................................................................................5
REFERENCES.....................................................................................................................................6

INTRODUCTION
Communication is the basic form of expressing ideas and thought and is the techniques for
conveying message from one creature to another. It is not always that communication includes
words, while communication can happen in the form of actions, gestures as well as expressions.
This form of non-verbal techniques of communicate is some times have similar impact as that of the
verbal impact. In this it has been discussed the reason of animal communications followed by the
question that is animal communication can be considered as a language. Moreover, in this report it
has been discussed the various types of animal communication (Swadesh, 2017).
Reason of animal communications
Languages are considered to be the most complex method of communication which occurs among
the human beings. When humans wants to express their ideas, thoughts and wants they tend to use
these set of verbal as well as non-verbal set of communication techniques. Human beings uses
words, expressions and actions to express their views, thoughts and feelings while on the other hand
animals uses the signs of communication to express their feelings such as dogs wagging their tails
when they get excited or the birds sang songs to attract the bird of opposite sex. Communication
generally happens within the creatures of single species or some times it happens between the
creatures of different species (Zahavi, 2018). This communication through signals by animals
includes involvement of sounds or auditory whereas communication through chemical involvement
includes pheromones. Some creatures communicate through cues, touches or tactile. One of the
essential reason for the animals to communicate is for caring their younger ones, for coordinating
their groups of similar behaviour, for defeating for their particular territory, for establishing their
dominance as well as most essentially for finding their mates or attracting the opposite sex.
Animal communications can be considered as a language?
Different scientists have researched over whether the animal communication can be considered as a
language or not which has been discussed below.
Some researchers have said it is true that animal to have in born qualities to communicate with each
other through sounds and gestures. Mostly, animals tends to produce the sound to express their
feelings of hunger and fear. Thus, animals uses some form of communication, where some animal
communications are complexer than that of the another. Moreover, the language of animal
communication is similar to that of the human language, but there are some significant differences.
For example, chimpanzees and baboons uses lexigrams, figures or symbols to represent their words,
whereas animals such as whales & birds uses the language of songs to expresses their feelings or to
communicate with one another. It has been researched by the various scientists that some animals
communicate or transfer their information through the usage of movements of their body or through

the usage of odour of their body. Some creatures such as bees uses a unique technique or approach
to convey their message of location information through dancing. According to one of the case
study, Koko a gorilla is known for learning thousands of signs of Gorilla Sign Language which was
developed to teach complex language to non humans (Filippi, 2016). Therefore, Koko could
respond to Gorilla Sign Language for about a thousand of words of spoken English. However, this
creature doesn't use syntax or grammar, but yet can communicate like a young human child.
Types of animal communication
For survival of an animal the ability to communicate with each other is essential. Since the animals
are not capable to master any language but perhaps they transmit their information to each other
through expressions and gestures. This expressing or sharing of information is the form of
communication. Moreover, communication could be variety of forms such as:
Vocalization
Vocalization is the form of communication for example such as in the case of dogs used to growl to
show their anger or aggression, similarly birds tends to produce sound to maintain their territory, for
attracting their mate as well as for staying up with their group.
Non- vocal noises
For example, the slapping of tail on the surface of water by the dolphins to warn the other dolphins
about the nearby danger or thumping of hind food for symbolizing danger by the rabbit is one of the
form animal communication. This type of communication is called non-vocal noises
communication (Townsend and et.al, 2017).
Smell
It is the form of communication in which creatures tend to express through smell. For example, to
mark the territory male lion tends to scent their area to make other lion aware of its already presence
and thus tends to communicate their message of staying away to other male lion.
Colour
One of the techniques used by animals to communicate to other living creature is through changing
colour. For example in the case of octopus, to express their feeling of fear and irritation they tend to
change their colour of their body, similarly Humboldt squid tends to flash bioluminescent colour for
sending the signal of their presence to other squid.
Visual display
Visual display is yet the another form of communication that occurs between some living creatures.
For example in the case of peacock, these living creatures show the feathers of their tail and dance
for attracting their mate, similarly it could be seen in the case of peacock spider that dances and
elaborate colourful displays for impressing the female peacock spiders (Martynenko and Svich,
2017).

Rules of language for animals by Hockett
Hockett has described that almost all animals communicate in some way. This communication can
be considered as language only if it follows all the characteristics of language. Some examples of
animal communication system are : for ants, they make use of chemical olfactory channel of
communication. While birds tends to demonstrate many features including vocal auditory, rapid
fading as well as semanticity or etc. Additionally, honeybees uses the space movement channel to
communicate.
CONCLUSION
This report can be concluded as, communication is the basic form of expressing ideas and thought
and is the techniques for conveying message from one creature to another. It is not always that
communication includes words, while communication can happen in the form of actions, gestures
as well as expressions. This form of non-verbal techniques of communicate is some times have
similar impact as that of the verbal impact. We have discussed in this repot the reason of animal
communications followed by the question that is animal communication can be considered as a
language. Moreover, in this report it has been discussed the various types of animal
communications.

REFERENCES
Books and journals
Filippi, P., 2016. Emotional and interactional prosody across animal communication systems: a
comparative approach to the emergence of language. Frontiers in psychology, 7, p.1393.
Martynenko, V.A. and Svich, N.A., 2017. Animal language and linguistics. In General question of
world science (pp. 34-37).
Swadesh, M., 2017. The origin and diversification of language. Routledge.
Townsend and et.al, 2017. Exorcising G rice's ghost: an empirical approach to studying intentional
communication in animals. Biological Reviews, 92(3), pp.1427-1433.
Zahavi, A., 2018. Animal Communication: The Handicap Principle. The International Encyclopedia
of Anthropology, pp.1-6.