Dolphins give themselves "names" to recognize friends and rivals in their social relationships.
Do animals call each other by name? If it is a question of dolphins, it seems so, able as they would be to retain single vocal labels, or "names", to recognize friends and rivals in their social relationships, just like humans.
This was discovered by scientists from the University of Western Australia who, together with those from the University of Zurich and the University of Massachusetts, analyzed 17 adult male bottlenose dolphins in Shark Bay, Western Australia, in a study. they are known for their ability to form alliances. These bonds are as strong as those between mothers and calves, so to speak, and friendships can last lifetimes.
A discovery that paints a picture of the social intelligence of dolphins under which no other non-human animal would be able to keep an individual "name" when forming long-term relationships between them.
The researchers collected recordings of the dolphins' vocalizations using underwater microphones, determining a single voice tag for each male. They then measured the similarity of these "identity cues" within and between other alliances to see if the males who had stronger social relationships had unique voice tags or not.
Well, what has emerged is that male dolphins are capable of keeping singles voice tags, real "names", which they allow them to track down their cooperative partners or, conversely, their enemies.
An unusual result, the scholars say, because, while it is very common for pairs or groups of animals to make their calls more similar when they share strong social bonds (such as parrots, bats, elephants or primates), in the case of dolphins there is something plus, since each male keeps a unique call by creating a real life network.
Previous research had already shown that dolphins vocalize real vocal labels similar to the names of humans, now the team of researchers confirms that these "names" they basically help males keep track of their many relationships: who their friends are, who their friends' friends are and who their competitors are.
"Maintaining individual names is more important than sharing calls as it allows dolphins to negotiate a complex social network of cooperative relationships," the study concludes.
An authentic alliance formation, then, and this is probably the only example we have in the animal kingdom outside of us humans.
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Germana CariIlo
