Kristoffer Sorensen originally shared this post:

2012-01-18

Naoki Watanabe originally shared this post:

Inter-species play, and communication

Inter-species animal interactions were once considered limited to basic predator-prey relationships. A clear case of anthropocentrism whereby humans regard themselves as the most significant entities in the universe to the detriment of study.

Solid research was chipping away at this idea in the late 60s, and in the 80s we had many famous examples of inter-species communication - humans and chimps (Jane Goodall) being a primary one. And over the years we've seen some great examples of domestic, wild, and animals in captivity forming friendships and bonds;

- Polar bears and dogs playing (a personal favorite, dogs and polar bears)

The more we investigate the more examples we find, including from this week, wild whales and dolphins clearly playing games with each other:

- http://www.treehugger.com/natural-sciences/rare-interspecies-play-observed-between-dolphins-and-whales.html

It's not just playing either, communication happens with levels of complexity people don't normally expect. Certain monkey species not only use grammar in their own group but have learned to understand calls used by other species in the area (it's beneficial to know when anybody shouts "look out!");

- http://www.pbs.org/wnet/nature/episodes/clever-monkeys/monkeys-and-language/3948/

And the ever adorable prairie dog could have one of the most complex languages yet studied in animals:

- http://news.softpedia.com/news/Prairie-Dogs-May-Have-the-Most-Complex-Animal-Language-133873.shtml

Complex communication and interactions among differing mammals species is now a given fact, but what about the other end of the scale.

In 2003 it was found that bacteria use a type of molecular language to coordinate their actions and to learn about the status of different species of bacteria in the local area. The information transmitted is used for "virulence factor production, biofilm formation, and motility";

- http://www.jci.org/articles/view/20195

This gave rise to one of my favorite TED talks on the subject:
- http://www.ted.com/talks/bonnie_bassler_on_how_bacteria_communicate.html

Franco Baldini originally shared this post:

Leone di mare... Disturbato