Horse (Equus caballus) whinnies: a source of social information.
Abstract: Many animal species that rely mainly on calls to communicate produce individual acoustic structures, but we wondered whether individuals of species better known as visual communicants, with small vocal repertoires, would also exhibit individual distinctiveness in calls. Moreover, theoretical advances concerning the evolution of social intelligence are usually based on primate species data, but relatively little is known about the social cognitive capacities of non-primate mammals. However, some non-primate species demonstrate auditory recognition of social categories and possess mental representation of their social network. Horses (Equus caballus) form stable social networks and although they display a large range of visual signals, they also use long-distance whinny calls to maintain contact. Here, we investigated the potential existence of individual acoustic signatures in whinny calls and the ability of horses to discriminate by ear individuals varying in their degree of familiarity. Our analysis of the acoustic structure of whinnies of 30 adult domestic horses (ten stallions, ten geldings, ten mares) revealed that some of the frequency and temporal parameters carried reliable information about the caller's sex, body size and identity. However, no correlations with age were found. Playback experiments evaluated the behavioural significance of this variability. Twelve horses heard either control white noise or whinnies emitted by group members, familiar neighbours or unfamiliar horses. While control sounds did not induce any particular response, horses discriminated the social category of the callers and reacted with a sound-specific behaviour (vigilance and attraction varied with familiarity). Our results support the existence of social knowledge in horses and suggest a process of vocal coding/decoding of information.
Publication Date: 2009-05-18 PubMed ID: 19449192DOI: 10.1007/s10071-009-0229-9Google Scholar: Lookup
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Summary
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This research investigates the whinny calls of horses, exploring if they carry individual characteristics and if horses can distinguish familiar from unfamiliar whinnies. The findings show that horses do have distinct whinny calls, conveying information such as sex and size, and horses can identify the social category of the caller, responding differently based on familiarity.
Uniqueness of Horse Whinny Calls
- The researchers studied the whinny calls of 30 adult domestic horses, consisting of an equal number of stallions, geldings, and mares. They found that these calls provide reliable information about the caller’s unique characteristics. This argues against the previous notion that the species, being primarily visual communicators, wouldn’t bear individual distinctiveness in their calls.
- Analysis of the acoustic structure of the calls demonstrated that these sounds carried information relating to the horse’s sex and body size. This refutes the previous assumption of species with small vocal repertoires having less individual distinctiveness in calls.
- Contrary to expectation, no correlations between the calls and the horses’ ages were found, indicating that age-related changes might not be reflected in their vocalizations.
Horse’s Ability to Recognize Whinny Calls
- Via a series of playback experiments with twelve horses, the researchers assessed the behavioural significance of the acoustic variability in whinny calls. The horses listened to control sounds (white noise) or calls from group members, familiar neighbours, or unfamiliar horses.
- The response from horses indicated that they have the ability to discriminate between the social categories of different callers. Unlike the control sounds which did not trigger any response, the horses reacted specifically to the whinnies based on their familiarity with the caller.
- Responses ranged from increased vigilance to attraction, varying with the degree of familiarity with the caller. This supports the notion that horses possess a level of social cognition, contrary to the limited composite knowledge on the social cognitive capacities of non-primate mammals.
Implications and Conclusions
- This research provides evidence for a process of vocal coding/decoding of information in horses, which confirms the existence of social knowledge in this species.
- The study also contributes to the wider understanding of social intelligence evolution, especially for species that are not primates. It showcases the capability for auditory recognition of social categories within some non-primate species, expanding the boundaries of our understanding of animal communication and social cognition.
Cite This Article
APA
Lemasson A, Boutin A, Boivin S, Blois-Heulin C, Hausberger M.
(2009).
Horse (Equus caballus) whinnies: a source of social information.
Anim Cogn, 12(5), 693-704.
https://doi.org/10.1007/s10071-009-0229-9 Publication
Researcher Affiliations
- Université de Rennes 1, EthoS Ethologie animale et humaine, UMR 6552, C.N.R.S., Station Biologique de Paimpont, 35380 Paimpont, France. alban.lemasson@univ-rennes1.fr
MeSH Terms
- Animals
- Female
- Horses / psychology
- Male
- Social Behavior
- Vocalization, Animal
Citations
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