Motivation before Meaning: Motivational Information Encoded in Meerkat Alarm Calls Develops Earlier than Referential Information

Abstract

Motivation before meaning: motivational information encoded in meerkat alarm calls develops earlier than referential information Hollén, L I; Manser, M B Hollén, L I; Manser, M B. Motivation before meaning: motivational information encoded in meerkat alarm calls develops earlier than referential information. Am. Nat. 2007, 169(6) Motivation before meaning: motivational information encoded in meerkat alarm calls develops earlier than referential information AbstractIn contrast to historical assumptions about the affective nature of animal vocalizations, it is now clear that many vertebrates are capable of producing specific alarm calls in response to different predators, calls that provide information that goes beyond the motivational state of a caller. However, although these calls function referentially, it does not mean that they are devoid of motivational content. Studies on meerkats (Suricata suricatta) directly support this conclusion. The acoustic structure of their alarm calls simultaneously encodes information that is both motivational (level of urgency) and referential (predator specific). In this study, we investigated whether alarm calls of young meerkats undergo developmental modification and whether the motivational or the referential aspect of calls changes more over time. We found that, based on their acoustic structure, calls of young showed a high correct assignment to low-and high-urgency contexts but, in contrast to adults, low assignment to specific predator types. However, the discrimination among predator types was better in high-urgency than in low-urgency contexts. Our results suggest that acoustic features related to level of urgency are expressed earlier than those related to predator-specific information and may support the idea that referential calls evolve from motivational signals. Online enhancements: appendix tables.abstract: In contrast to historical assumptions about the affective nature of animal vocalizations, it is now clear that many vertebrates are capable of producing specific alarm calls in response to different predators, calls that provide information that goes beyond the motivational state of a caller. However, although these calls function referentially, it does not mean that they are devoid of motivational content. Studies on meerkats (Suricata suricatta) directly support this conclusion. The acoustic structure of their alarm calls simultaneously encodes information that is both motivational (level of urgency) and referential (predator specific). In this study, we investigated whether alarm calls of young meerkats undergo developmental modification and whether the motivational or the referential aspect of calls changes more over time. We found that, based on their acoustic structure, calls of young showed a high correct assignment to low-and highurgency contexts but, in contrast to adults, low assignment to specific predator types. However, the discrimination among predator types was better in high-urgency than in low-urgency contexts. Our results suggest that acoust...

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“…For example, in the social groups of meerkats (Suricata suricatta), the alarm calls of young are longer in duration, more modulated, noisier, and have their energy at higher frequencies than those of adults [42,43]. These phenomena are consistent with the findings of our model, as weak players are more likely to contribute to public goods.…”

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“…Furthermore, even calls with presumably high motivational content (as may be the case for food discovery) are still able to inform receivers about the external world. This has been demonstrated by studies showing that, regardless of the signaller's motivational state during call production, calls can provide listeners with representational information about external objects and events, in way that can be studied experimentally [1], [27], [41], [43]–[45]. Recent work on the alarm call responses of meerkats ( Suricata suricata ) for example, has demonstrated that both emotional and referential information are encoded into the same signal and develop on different ontogenetic time scales [45].…”

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“…via the number or [46][47][48]. For example, many species of marmots alter the rate of their alarm calls with the urgency of the situation or the degree of risk [49].…”