Animal Communication Research Projects

How animals communicate with each other and with humans fascinates pet owners and scientists alike. What they think, how they behave, what emotions are they expressing --- all queries that account for the popularity of such diverse entities as the latest dog training book, the National Geographic Society and the Animal Planet Network. The research projects that show how animals communicate with each other become an invaluable tool in allowing humans into the unknown world of the animal brain.

  1. Elephant Listening Project

    • The Elephant Listening Project (ELP) started in 1984 at the Portland, Oregon Zoo when handlers and researchers noticed that Asian elephants communicate with each other using sounds below the threshold of human hearing. They discovered that these sub-level sounds carry over long distances and that elephants vocalize to connect with other elephants in their social systems. Associated with the Bioacoustics Research Program at Cornell University, the ELP continues to function as a non-profit organization studying the vocalizations of elephants in the zoo and in the field.

    Vocal Communication System of the African Elephant

    • Scientists at the Wildlife Tracking Center at Disney's Animal Kingdom want to know how the African elephant vocally communicates within its herd, so they are placing customized collars around each animal's neck to record the low rumblings of each individual. By tracking social interactions and behavioral data along with vocal data, they hope to "determine the behavioral context of vocalizations, factors influencing vocalizations rate and category, and the relationship between vocalizations and social behavior," states Dr. Anne Savage in the Animal Behavior Society newsletter.

    Banded Wren Vocal Communication

    • In a project headed by Professor Sandra Vehrencamp of the Bioacoustics Research Program at Cornell University, scientists study how male banded wrens use differing song types to defend their territories against other males and attract mates. According to the research, females prefer to mate with males that have a larger repertoire of songs, leading scientists to determine that "the repertoire size of a male may be determined by his nutritional condition, health, and/or foraging ability," says the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Repertoire size in the male banded wren indicates age and fitness to mate.

    "Sea Monsters" Expeditions

    • Researchers from the National Geographic Society, the Smithsonian Institution and the Cornell University Ornithology Bioacoustics Research Program tracked the vocalizations and movement of sperm whales as they hunted for giant squid off the coast of New Zealand. By hanging underwater microphones (hydrophones) on a line down into the depths of the Kaikoura underwater canyon, scientists determined that a pod of sperm whales uses a series of clicks to find their prey and get their bearings underwater --- effectively communicating to the group where to find food.