PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

Meerkat chit-chat

Konstanz researchers unravel the vocal interactions of meerkat groups and show they use two different types of interactions to stay in touch.

2024-05-20
(Press-News.org) EMBARGOED UNTIL MONDAY, 20 MAY 2024, 01:01 CEST (00:01 BST/London Time)

Meerkats use two different types of vocal interactions to stay in touch with their group mates. Sometimes the call simply broadcasts information, whereas other times meerkats engage in a call exchange with their neighbours, as researchers from the Centre for the Advanced Study of Collective Behaviour at the University of Konstanz and the Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior present in a new publication published on 20 May in Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B.

What does it sound like when meerkats call out to each other?
You can find additional audio and video material on campus.kn.

Meerkats are group-living animals which are on the move nearly throughout the whole day. As they are walking or running, they make a continuous series of noises. Researchers have now decoded how wild meerkats use two of the sounds they make. “The first sound, a ‘close call’, is like a call-and-response exchange between the animals”, as postdoctoral researcher Vlad Demartsev from the Cluster of Excellence Collective Behaviour describes.  “When one meerkat calls, a neighbour is likely to reply”, he adds.  “Whereas the second call, named a ‘short note’, announces ‘I am here’ but doesn’t necessarily get a direct reply from communication partners.” 

Partners are necessary for an exchange
Imagine a situation of an announcement in front of a big crowd. A lot of information is being transmitted, but it usually goes in one direction, there is no exchange between the speaker and audience. "It is impossible to hold a conversation with 20 people, so we normally talk to one partner at a time", explains Vlad Demartsev. Close calls are such an exchange between communication partners and short notes are more like a broadcast or an announcement aimed at the whole group. 

Vlad Demartsev and Ariana Strandburg-Peshkin from the Max-Planck Institute of Animal Behaviour and the University of Konstanz, together with collaborators from the University of Zurich, deployed collars on meerkats in several groups at the Kalahari Research Centre in South Africa. The collars recorded continuous audio data and GPS positions were sampled every second. Using these collars, the researchers got a synchronized recording and could see which animal produced which sound at which time and where.

Exchange vs broadcast?
Afterwards, the behavioural ecologists prepared one vocal timeline for the whole group and analysed the data. “We saw that when a close call is given, there is a very high probability that within less than half a second a nearby neighbour will respond. But when we have a short note, we do not have this pattern. All of them are calling nearly at the same time and there is no structure”, says Vlad Demartsev. “Ultimately, calls are not just single isolated events, but a continuous stream of communication between group members. So, looking at the temporal structure of the interactions can help us to better understand how calls are used and what their function is”, adds Ari Strandburg-Peshkin.  

Staying in a group is crucial for meerkats and they use multiple mechanisms which evolved to avoid getting separated. “When meerkats are by themselves there is a higher chance of predation or harassment by other groups. Generally, meerkats therefore try very, very hard to stay together”, says Vlad Demartsev.

 

Key Facts:

EMBARGOED UNTIL MONDAY, 20 MAY 2024, 01:01 CEST (00:01 BST/London Time) Publication: Demartsev V, Averly B, Johnson-Ulrich L, Sridhar VH, Leonardos L, Vining A, Thomas M, Manser MB, Strandburg-Peshkin A. 2024 Mapping vocal interactions in space and time differentiates signal broadcast versus signal exchange in meerkat groups. Phil. Trans. R. Soc. B 379: 20230188. https://doi.org/10.1098/rstb.2023.0188. Vlad Demartsev is a behavioural ecologist at the Cluster of Excellence Collective Behaviour interested mainly in the topics of mammalian vocal communication in social settings. His research focuses on the interplay between aspects of the social environment communication tactics and signal structure. Ariana Strandburg-Peshkin is a research group leader jointly affiliated with the MPI-AB Ecology of Animal Societies Department and the University of Konstanz Biology Department. Her group studies the mechanisms and consequences of communication and collective behaviour in social animals. The Centre for the Advanced Study of Collective Behaviour at the University of Konstanz is a global hotspot for the study of collective behaviour across a wide range of species and across scales of organization. It is a Cluster of Excellence within the framework of the German Excellence Strategy of the federal and state governments.  

Note to editors
Pictures are available for download

https://www.uni-konstanz.de/fileadmin/pi/fileserver/2024_EXTRA/Plauderei/720.jpg
Copyright: Vlad Demartsev
  https://www.uni-konstanz.de/fileadmin/pi/fileserver/2024_EXTRA/Plauderei/249.jpg
Copyright: Vlad Demartsev
  https://www.uni-konstanz.de/fileadmin/pi/fileserver/2024_EXTRA/Plauderei/132.jpg
Copyright: Vlad Demartsev
  https://www.uni-konstanz.de/fileadmin/pi/fileserver/2024_EXTRA/Plauderei/061.jpg
Copyright: Vlad Demartsev
  https://www.uni-konstanz.de/fileadmin/pi/fileserver/2024_EXTRA/Plauderei/060.jpg
Copyright: Vlad Demartsev
  https://www.uni-konstanz.de/fileadmin/pi/fileserver/2024_EXTRA/Plauderei/003.jpg
Copyright: Vlad Demartsev
  https://www.uni-konstanz.de/fileadmin/pi/fileserver/2024_EXTRA/Plauderei/040.jpg
Copyright: Vlad Demartsev
  https://www.uni-konstanz.de/fileadmin/pi/fileserver/2024_EXTRA/Plauderei/Erdmaennchenmama_mit_Baby.jpg
Copyright: Vlad Demartsev
  https://www.uni-konstanz.de/fileadmin/pi/fileserver/2024_EXTRA/Plauderei/Erdmaennchen_hochkant_stehend.jpg
Copyright: Vlad Demartsev
  https://www.uni-konstanz.de/fileadmin/pi/fileserver/2024_EXTRA/Plauderei/Erdmaennchen_mit_Marker_hochkant.jpg
Copyright: Vlad Demartsev END



ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Extreme heat associated with children’s asthma hospital visits

Extreme heat associated with children’s asthma hospital visits
2024-05-20
EMBARGOED UNTIL:  2:15 p.m. PT, May 19, 2024   Session:  A95 – Climate Change and Health Disparities in Lung Disease Extreme Heat and Asthma Hospitalizations in Children in California (2017-2020) Date and Time: Sunday, May 19, 2024, 2:15 p.m. PT Location:  San Diego Convention Center, Room 24A-C (Upper Level)   ATS 2024, San Diego – For children seeking care at a California urban pediatric health center, extreme heat events were associated with increased asthma hospital visits, according to research published at the ATS 2024 International Conference.   “We found ...

Poor access to in-home nursing for medically complex children quantified

Poor access to in-home nursing for medically complex children quantified
2024-05-20
EMBARGOED UNTIL: 2:15 p.m. PT, Sunday, May 19, 2024   Session:  Session A96 – Improving the Care of Patients with Diverse Pulmonary Conditions and Sleep Disordered Breathing The State of Home Health Nursing for Medically Complex Children in the United States Date and Time: Sunday, May 19, 2024, 2:15 p.m. PT Location:  San Diego Convention Center, Room 8 (Upper Level) ATS 2024, San Diego – For American families with medically-complex children, access to home health nursing is often inadequate and the families face major financial burdens, according to research published ...

Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT) may improve pulmonary hypertension and right ventricular function

Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT) may improve pulmonary hypertension and right ventricular function
2024-05-20
EMBARGOED UNTIL:  2:15 p.m. PT, May 19, 2024 Session:  A97 – It’s (Not) a Small World: Molecular and Physiologic Epidemiology in PAH The Impact of Reproductive History on Pulmonary Hypertension: Insights from the Pvdomics Study Date and Time: Sunday, May 19, 2024, 2:15 p.m. PT Location:  San Diego Convention Center, Room 6D (Upper Level)   ATS 2024, San Diego – The use of hormone replacement therapy (HRT) may be associated with improved pulmonary hypertension in women, according to research presented at the ATS 2024 International Conference. Pulmonary hypertension (PH) is a type of pulmonary vascular ...

Hospitals caring for diverse patient populations have higher mechanical ventilation mortality

Hospitals caring for diverse patient populations have higher mechanical ventilation mortality
2024-05-20
EMBARGOED UNTIL:  2:39 P.M. PT, May 19, 2024   Session:  A93 - CRITICAL CARE AND ACUTE CARE MEDICINE: DISPARITIES, QUALITY IMPROVEMENT, AND OUTCOMES Examining the Association Between Hospital Environments and Intersectional Disparities in Mechanical Ventilation Outcomes Date and Time: Sunday May 19, 2024, 2:39 p.m. PT Location:  San Diego Convention Center, Room 7A-B (Upper Level)   ATS 2024, San Diego – The odds of death for patients receiving mechanical ventilation for pneumonia or sepsis  increase along with the diversity of hospitals’ patient populations, suggesting more systemic factors such ...

Spirometry clinical trial eligibility may differ with race-neutral equations

Spirometry clinical trial eligibility may differ with race-neutral equations
2024-05-19
  EMBARGOED UNTIL:  9:15 a.m. PT, May 19, 2024   Session:  A27 – Emerging Treatments and Therapeutic Strategies in COP: Results of Clinical Trials and Observational Studies Impact of Race-Neutral Spirometry Reference Equations on Eligibility for Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease Clinical Trials Date and Time: Sunday, May 19, 9:15 a.m. PT Location:  San Diego Convention Center, Room 33A-C (Upper Level)   ATS 2024, San Diego – Equations that don’t use racially and ethnically adjusted spirometry results to help determine eligibility for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) ...

World-first trial shows benefits of finding, treating undiagnosed asthma and COPD

World-first trial shows benefits of finding, treating undiagnosed asthma and COPD
2024-05-19
Finding and treating people with undiagnosed asthma or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) improved their health and reduced their healthcare visits for respiratory symptoms in the year after diagnosis, according to a world-first clinical trial published in the New England Journal of Medicine. "It's estimated that 70 per cent of people with asthma or COPD go undiagnosed." said study lead Dr. Shawn Aaron, a senior scientist and lung specialist at The Ottawa Hospital and professor at the University of ...

Acetaminophen shows promise in warding off acute respiratory distress syndrome, organ injury in patients with sepsis

2024-05-19
A National Institutes of Health (NIH)-supported clinical trial has found that intravenous acetaminophen reduced sepsis patients’ risk of having organ injury or developing acute respiratory distress syndrome, a serious condition that allows fluid to leak into the lungs. Sepsis is the body’s uncontrolled and extreme response to an infection. While the trial did not improve mortality rates in all patients with sepsis regardless of severity, the researchers found that acetaminophen gave the greatest benefit to the patients most at risk for organ damage. With the therapy, those patients needed less assisted ...

Bisoprolol in patients with COPD at high risk of exacerbation

2024-05-19
About The Study: Among people with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) at high risk of exacerbation, treatment with the β1-selective β-blocker bisoprolol did not reduce the number of self-reported COPD exacerbations requiring treatment with oral corticosteroids, antibiotics, or both. Quote from corresponding author Graham Devereux, M.D.: “People with COPD are at increased risk of cardiovascular conditions that benefit from treatment with beta-blockers. However, there is a well-documented ...

Pamrevlumab for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis

2024-05-19
About The Study: Among patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis treated with pamrevlumab (a fully human monoclonal antibody that binds to and inhibits connective tissue growth factor activity) or placebo, there was no statistically significant between-group difference for the primary outcome of absolute change in forced vital capacity from baseline to week 48.  Quote from corresponding author, Ganesh Raghu, M.D.: “Current treatment with the two drugs approved by regulatory agencies ...

Acetaminophen for prevention and treatment of organ dysfunction in critically ill patients with sepsis

2024-05-19
About The Study: In critically ill sepsis patients, treatment with intravenous acetaminophen for 5 days was safe but did not improve the primary end point of days alive and free of any organ support (dialysis, assisted ventilation, and vasopressors) to day 28 compared with placebo.   Corresponding Author: To contact the corresponding author, Lorraine B. Ware, M.D., email Lorraine.ware@vumc.org. To access the embargoed study: Visit our For The Media website at this link https://media.jamanetwork.com/ (doi:10.1001/jama.2024.8772) Editor’s Note: Please see the ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Mapping the gaps: New global assessment reveals stark biases in ocean biodiversity data

Penn engineers turn toxic fungus into anti-cancer drug

International study: AI has little impact on workers’ wellbeing so far, but…

Scientists develop test that predicts which patients will not respond to cancer chemotherapy

Scientists create test to predict chemotherapy resistance in patients

Wildfires threaten water quality for up to eight years after they burn

More effective production of “green” hydrogen with new combined material

Study reveals processes important for skin cancer aggressiveness and identifies two classes of drugs that may block them

Recycled plastics can affect hormone systems and metabolism

How babies are affected by their mother’s age

‘Closed loop’ learning barriers prevent doctors from using life-saving bedside ultrasound

Simple blood test predicts cognitive decline in Alzheimer's patients, new study shows

Antimicrobial resistance genes hitch rides on imported seafood

New way to find “aged” cells marks fresh approach for research into ageing

From blood sugar to brain relief: GLP-1 therapy slashes migraine frequency

Variability in heart rate during sleep may reveal early signs of stroke, depression or cognitive dysfunction, new study shows

New method to study catalysts could lead to better batteries

Current Molecular Pharmacology impact factor rises to 2.9, achieving Q2 ranking in the Pharmacology & Pharmacy category in 2024 JCR

More time with loved ones for cancer patients spared radiation treatment

New methods speed diagnosis of rare genetic disease

Genetics of cardiomyopathy risk in cancer survivors differ by age of onset

Autism inpatient collection releases genetic, phenotypic data for more than 1,500 children with autism

Targeting fusion protein’s role in childhood leukemia produces striking results

Clear understanding of social connections propels strivers up the social ladder

New research reveals why acute and chronic pain are so different – and what might make pain last

Stable cooling fostered life, rapid warming brought death: scientists use high-resolution fusuline data reveal evolutionary responses to cooling and warming

New research casts doubt on ancient drying of northern Africa’s climate

Study identifies umbilical cord blood biomarkers of early onset sepsis in preterm newborns

AI development: seeking consistency in logical structures

Want better sleep for your tween? Start with their screens

[Press-News.org] Meerkat chit-chat
Konstanz researchers unravel the vocal interactions of meerkat groups and show they use two different types of interactions to stay in touch.