Bottlenose dolphins can use learned vocal labels to address each other
Wild bottlenose dolphins respond to hearing a copy of their own signature whistle by calling back
In animal communication research, vocal labeling refers to incidents in which an animal consistently uses a specific acoustic signal when presented with a specific object or class of objects. Labeling with learned signals is a foundation of human language but is notably rare in nonhuman communication systems. In natural animal systems, labeling often occurs with signals that are not influenced by learning, such as in alarm and food calling.
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