Includes bibliographical references (pages 221-237) and index.
Contents:
Prologue -- Part one. Social behavior. Primate diversity -- Barbary macaques : model monkeys -- Primate social systems -- Chacma baboons : into the wild -- Guinea baboons : uncharted territories -- The evolution of baboons -- Challenges of the third kind -- Part two. Cognition. What do animals think? -- Physical cognition -- Social intelligence -- Social knowledge -- Theory of mind -- The evolution of intelligence -- Part three. Communication. What is communication? -- The function of monkey sounds -- The evolution of language : beginnings -- Ape language projects -- Natural communication in primates -- Word learning in a domestic dog -- The evolution of language : state of the art -- The evolution of communication -- Conclusion and prospects.
Summary:
Monkey see, monkey do?or does she? Can the behavior of non-human primates?their sociality, their intelligence, their communication?really be chalked up to simple mimicry? Emphatically, absolutely: no. And as famed primatologist Julia Fischer reveals, the human bias inherent in this oft-uttered adage is our loss, for it is only through the study of our primate brethren that we may begin to understand ourselves. An eye-opening blend of storytelling, memoir, and science, Monkeytalk takes us into the field and the world?s primate labs to investigate the intricacies of primate social mores through the lens of communication. After first detailing the social interactions of key species from her fieldwork?from baby-wielding male Barbary macaques, who use infants as social accessories in a variety of interactions, to aggression among the chacma baboons of southern Africa and male-male tolerance among the Guinea baboons of Senegal?Fischer explores the role of social living in the rise of primate intelligence and communication, ultimately asking what the ways in which other primates communicate can teach us about the evolution of human language. Funny and fascinating, Fischer?s tale roams from a dinner in the field shared with lionesses to insights gleaned from Rico, a border collie with an astonishing vocabulary, but its message is clear: it is humans who are the evolutionary mimics. The primate heritage visible in our species is far more striking than the reverse, and it is the monkeys who deserve to be seen. ?The social life of macaques and baboons is a magnificent opera,? Fischer writes. ?Permit me now to raise the curtain on it.?
This resource is supported by the Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act as administered by State Library of Iowa.