{"id":2187693,"date":"2025-07-18T18:00:49","date_gmt":"2025-07-18T17:00:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/focusingonwildlife.com\/news\/?p=2187693"},"modified":"2025-07-17T15:11:48","modified_gmt":"2025-07-17T14:11:48","slug":"first-evidence-of-potential-language-like-communication-in-dolphins-study","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/focusingonwildlife.com\/news\/first-evidence-of-potential-language-like-communication-in-dolphins-study\/","title":{"rendered":"First Evidence of Potential Language-Like Communication in Dolphins: Study"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Dolphins are known to be one of the most intelligent animals on Earth, living in highly social groups and displaying empathy, self-awareness, problem-solving skills and tool use.<\/p>\n<p>They communicate using a sophisticated array of clicks, body language and whistles, with \u201csignature whistles\u201d (SWs) serving as names for individuals.<\/p>\n<p>Recent research by scientists with the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) and partner institutions has identified possible language-like communication among dolphins.<\/p>\n<p>Their research focused on \u201cnon-signature\u201d whistles (NSWs), which the researchers found to potentially function like words in communications between multiple dolphins. NSWs have received less research attention than the name-like vocalizations of SWs.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBottlenose dolphins have long-fascinated animal communication researchers,\u201d said biologist Laela Sayigh, leader of the WHOI research team, in a press release from the institution. \u201cWithout the over five-decade-long study by the Sarasota Dolphin Research Program, we would not have such an extensive library of vocalizations for individual dolphins. With this, we can study non-signature whistles, which have received very little research attention to date. Our work shows that these whistles could potentially function like words, shared by multiple dolphins.\u201d<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"bluesky-embed\" data-bluesky-uri=\"at:\/\/did:plc:olpq5pzfvpixo75f5ulcn7xd\/app.bsky.feed.post\/3lps3wlkzfc25\" data-bluesky-cid=\"bafyreiefcqyytkudzzglmynedvtorr4dridpdk7gbgpnrdzro5ud2eevx4\" data-bluesky-embed-color-mode=\"system\">\n<p lang=\"en\">Check out this piece on some of our latest findings on dolphin communication, in research led by our colleague Laela Sayigh.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/bsky.app\/profile\/did:plc:olpq5pzfvpixo75f5ulcn7xd\/post\/3lps3wlkzfc25?ref_src=embed\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow external noreferrer\" data-wpel-link=\"external\">[image or embed]<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Frants Jensen (<a href=\"https:\/\/bsky.app\/profile\/did:plc:olpq5pzfvpixo75f5ulcn7xd?ref_src=embed\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow external noreferrer\" data-wpel-link=\"external\">@frantsjensen.bsky.social<\/a>) <a href=\"https:\/\/bsky.app\/profile\/did:plc:olpq5pzfvpixo75f5ulcn7xd\/post\/3lps3wlkzfc25?ref_src=embed\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow external noreferrer\" data-wpel-link=\"external\">May 22, 2025 at 10:50 PM<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/embed.bsky.app\/static\/embed.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>The WHOI team and partner institutions, including the Brookfield Zoo Chicago\u2019s Sarasota Dolphin Research Program (SDRP), were the winners of the first Coller Dolittle Challenge for their work.<\/p>\n<p>NSWs make up roughly half of the whistles produced by dolphins living in the waters around Sarasota, Florida.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSignature whistles are individually distinctive whistles that function much like human names. Non-signature whistles are all whistles other than signatures. We have only very recently started studying them and know very little about them, but we have found evidence for widespread sharing of a variety of stereotyped non-signature whistle types,\u201d Sayigh told EcoWatch in an email.<\/p>\n<p>The research team used playback experiments in the wild to identify distinct types of NSWs used for communication by multiple dolphins.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe have been studying the possible functions of some shared, stereotyped non signature whistle types, including NSWA. We found that this whistle type typically elicits avoidance responses, leading us to believe that it may have an alarm-type function,\u201d Sayigh told EcoWatch.<\/p>\n<p>The researchers found another NSW that they correlated with a \u201cquery\u201d function \u2014 \u201cNSWB\u201d \u2014 produced by the dolphins in response to an unfamiliar or unexpected situation.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe first observed NSWB as a response to NSW playbacks, which were likely unexpected in the context that they were presented. Later we also observed them to be produced by a pair of males in response to unexpected playbacks of their own signature whistles. This led us to suggest that this whistle may be produced in response to an unexpected stimulus, perhaps as a way of inquiring what it is,\u201d Sayigh explained.<\/p>\n<p>The team placed digital acoustic tags and non-invasive suction-cup hydrophones on the dolphins during catch-and-release health assessments to record known individuals.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe have built a unique library of sounds produced by known individual common bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus),\u201d the authors wrote in the study. \u201cWe have catalogued the name-like signature whistles (SWs) of most animals in this resident community of 170 dolphins, which has enabled us to begin studying little known \u2018non-signature whistles\u2019 (NSW). We have so far identified 22 shared NSW types, of which two, NSWA and NSWB, are known to have been produced by at least 25 and 35 different dolphins respectively.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The authors said that, since SWs and SW copies appeared to be referential signals, and are already known to be learned, it is likely that stereotyped and shared NSWs are also referential and learned.<\/p>\n<p>This is \u201can idea that is supported by the fact that dolphins are flexible, life-long vocal production learners, unlike most other non-human mammals,\u201d the authors wrote. \u201cOur study provides the first evidence in dolphins for a wider repertoire of shared, context-specific signals, which could form the basis for a language-like communication system.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Sayigh told EcoWatch that the research team has so far \u201conly suggested\u201d that NSWs \u201cmay be word-like, in the sense that they may have specific meanings that are understood by multiple animals. However, this is only a hypothesis at this stage.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Sayigh said the team is currently trying to understand how dolphins use NSWs to communicate.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe have so far only tested responses to NSWA and NSWB. Responses to playbacks of NSWB have been variable, which could support a variety of functions, including our suggested function as a query,\u201d Sayigh said.<\/p>\n<p>The study, \u201cFirst evidence for widespread sharing of stereotyped non-signature whistle types by wild dolphins,\u201d is available on the bioRxiv preprint server.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHumans share this planet with millions of other species, but for far too long we\u2019ve only talked among ourselves. The Coller Dolittle Challenge aims to change that, so I\u2019m excited by the fascinating work Laela and her team have done on dolphin communication. They are worthy winners and I can\u2019t wait to see how they use AI to further interpret this vast set of data,\u201d said Jeremy Coller, founder of the Coller Dolittle Challenge, in the press release.<\/p>\n<p><iframe title=\"Ocean Encounters: An Ocean of Sound\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/YTIP9BlJ9QE\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><i>This <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ecowatch.com\/dolphins-language-communication-evidence.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow external noreferrer\" data-wpel-link=\"external\">article<\/a> by Cristen Hemingway Jaynes was first published by EcoWatch on 10 July 2025. Lead Image: Four long-term resident mother-calf dolphin pairs swim off the coast of Sarasota, Florida. Randy Wells \/ Sarasota Dolphin Research Program.<br \/>\n<\/i><\/p>\n<h2>Wildlife in catastrophic decline<\/h2>\n<p>The 73% decline in vertebrate wildlife populations during the last 50 years (mammals, birds, amphibians, reptiles and fish), is primarily driven by human activities that threaten biodiversity.<\/p>\n<p><em>Habitat Loss and Degradation<\/em> &#8211; human activities like deforestation, urbanization, and agriculture have led to the destruction and fragmentation of natural habitats, reducing the space and resources available for wildlife.<\/p>\n<p><em>Pollution<\/em> &#8211; air, water, and soil pollution from industrial activities, agriculture, and other sources can harm wildlife directly or indirectly by affecting their habitats and food sources.<\/p>\n<p><em>Climate Change<\/em> &#8211; changing weather patterns, rising temperatures, and sea levels are disrupting ecosystems and impacting species&#8217; ability to adapt and survive.<\/p>\n<p><em>Overexploitation of Resources<\/em> &#8211; unsustainable hunting, fishing, and logging practices can lead to the depletion of populations and the loss of biodiversity.<\/p>\n<p><em>Invasive Species<\/em> &#8211; the introduction of non-native species can disrupt ecosystems, compete with native species, and threaten their survival.<\/p>\n<p><script type=\"text\/javascript\" defer=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/donorbox.org\/install-popup-button.js\" id=\"donorbox-popup-button-installer\"> <\/script><a id=\"preview_inline_popup_button\" class=\"dbox-donation-button\" style=\"background: #0dc5dc; color: #ffffff; text-decoration: none; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; display: flex; gap: 8px; width: fit-content; font-size: 16px; border-radius: 5px; line-height: 24px; padding: 8px 24px;\" href=\"https:\/\/donorbox.org\/focusing-on-wildlife-needs-your-support?default_interval=m&amp;amount=50\" data-reminder-widget-enabled=\"true\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow external noreferrer\" data-wpel-link=\"external\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/ywAAAAAAQABAAACAUwAOw==\" fifu-lazy=\"1\" fifu-data-sizes=\"auto\" fifu-data-srcset=\"https:\/\/donorbox.org\/images\/white_logo.svg 75w, https:\/\/donorbox.org\/images\/white_logo.svg 100w, https:\/\/donorbox.org\/images\/white_logo.svg 150w, https:\/\/donorbox.org\/images\/white_logo.svg 240w, https:\/\/donorbox.org\/images\/white_logo.svg 320w, https:\/\/donorbox.org\/images\/white_logo.svg 500w, https:\/\/donorbox.org\/images\/white_logo.svg 640w, https:\/\/donorbox.org\/images\/white_logo.svg 800w, https:\/\/donorbox.org\/images\/white_logo.svg 1024w, https:\/\/donorbox.org\/images\/white_logo.svg 1280w, https:\/\/donorbox.org\/images\/white_logo.svg 1600w\" fifu-data-src=\"https:\/\/donorbox.org\/images\/white_logo.svg\" alt=\"\" title=\"\">Donate<\/a><\/p>\n<p><em>Help to protect wildlife by donating as little as $5. Our <a href=\"https:\/\/focusingonwildlife.com\/news\/wildlife-charities-supported-by-focusing-on-wildlife\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" data-wpel-link=\"internal\">conservation partners<\/a> spend at least 80 percent of the money raised on actual fieldwork rather than administration and fundraising.<\/em><\/p>\n<hr style=\"border-top: 1px solid white;\" \/>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Dolphins are known to be one of the most intelligent animals on Earth, living in highly social groups and displaying empathy, self-awareness, problem-solving skills and tool use. They communicate using a sophisticated array of clicks, body language and whistles, with \u201csignature whistles\u201d (SWs) serving as names for individuals. Recent research by scientists with the Woods [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1178,"featured_media":2204682,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.ecowatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/dolphins.jpeg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[6985,5],"tags":[3797],"class_list":["post-2187693","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","category-wildlife","tag-dolphins"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/focusingonwildlife.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2187693","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/focusingonwildlife.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/focusingonwildlife.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/focusingonwildlife.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1178"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/focusingonwildlife.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2187693"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/focusingonwildlife.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2187693\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/focusingonwildlife.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2204682"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/focusingonwildlife.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2187693"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/focusingonwildlife.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2187693"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/focusingonwildlife.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2187693"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}