The Incredible Language of Prairie Dogs

Trivia Question: What is the most complex animal language ever decoded?

A) Dolphin
B) Chimpanzee
C) Orca
D) Other

A week ago I would have answered with A. Dolphins have been shown to possess incredible vocal abilities, including unique names that are used by other dolphins. And perhaps the key to the question is “decoded.” One day the other animals might prove to own more complex language, but the answer as of today is D. The current queens and kings are prairie dogs.

If you have ever witnessed prairie dogs in the wild (or zoos for that matter) it is abundantly clear they are community-oriented and extremely communicative. They warn each other of threats to their towns with shrill, cute yips and screes. To a casual observer, the communication might seem to be a straight alarm whistle, but research conducted by Professor Con Slobodchikoff of Northern Arizona University has shown the language to be far more intricate than previously imagined.

Slobodchikoff took to the field to record the prairie dogs speaking to each other. Analysis of the language showed distinct calls for different types of external threats. The animals barked discrete audio signals for hawks, coyotes, humans, or even domesticated dogs.

Already incredible, the data pointed to more surprises. Through computer analysis of the frequencies and overtones of the audio, the researchers noticed differences between calls for individuals of a species. Were the prairie dogs noticing descriptive differences among threats? According to Slobodchikoff, the answer is yes.

When the same human walked into prairie dog towns wearing different colored shirts, the alarm responses were different, as if they were saying, “human with blue” or “human with yellow” instead of simply “human.” They could also note features about a specimen, such as height or build. When humans entered wearing the same lab coats, the alarm calls were still different, distinguishing between tall humans and short humans or thin humans and thicker humans. The tests were repeated on domesticated dogs and the results were the same.

From simple shrieks, suddenly the prairie dogs possessed a varied vocabulary. They had evolved to perceive nuanced information to relay to colonies based on the threats. Slobodchikoff had mapped the specific audio for the different calls, assembling a visual dictionary of prairie dog words.

But the insights didn’t end there. The researchers decided to test the chattering rodents further, introducing shapes they had never encountered. They showed them a black oval on a plywood board and the prairies dogs produced new alarm calls the researchers had not previously detected. Circles and triangles were introduced, again eliciting new calls. In linguistics and language theory, this form of new exclamations in the moment is called “productivity.” It is a key part of what constitutes language (as opposed to mere vocalization).

The researchers branched out to colonies in different parts of North America and even noticed “dialects,” slight pronunciation variances in the audio similar to dialects in human beings. There are further mysteries in the language that remain undeciphered. Researchers have noted social communications, but because they did not introduce a specific externality they cannot be certain what the prairie dogs are talking about. So despite the vast complexity studied to this point, it seems far more awaits to decode.

One curiosity to note is the language does not seem to be used across prairie dog species. One species might be speaking French, another German, and a third Swahili. They can understand their buddies, but at the moment cannot communicate with another species.

As ever, scientific debate surrounds the issue. Some scientists do not believe what prairie dogs possess can truly be called language. Are the prairies dogs really speaking in syntax to one another or are they simply reacting via instinct to different stimuli? Others do not believe the patterns discovered are enough to cement the notion. Pushing back, some experts think the disbelievers may suffer from human bias, that the methodology and the data are solid. We have long viewed ourselves as the supreme intellect on the planet; that language is what separates us from the beasts. If other beings are shown to possess language, does that fact really challenge our intellect?

Even Slobodchikoff believes other species might one day be shown to possess more sophisticated language than prairie dogs, but at the moment their language is the most incredible yet mapped.

They’re also incredibly cute. If you ever want to amaze someone who goes nuts with animals, I cannot recommend prairie dogs highly enough. A prairie dog jump-yip is like Love Potion #9.