Whales and dolphins live in cohesive social groups, build complex relationships, talk to each other and even speak zonal dialects - in general, all as people.
The major new study held jointly by scientists from Canada, the United States and Great Britain, published in “Nature Ecology & Evolution”, links the complexity of the culture and behavior of cetaceans with the size of their brains.
For the first time, the scientific world has acquired a solid set of data on the dimensions of the brain of cetacean mammals, based on information on nine dozen different subspecies of dolphins, whales and porpoises. Moreover, the researchers presented irrefutable evidence that cetaceans have complex social and cooperative behavioral traits inherent in human culture.
As it turned out, these characteristics are related to the size and expansion of the brain, and the process itself is called encephalization (the gradual acceptance by the brain of control over any function of the organism as far as phylogenetic development is going on).
The list of behavioral similarities between humans and cetaceans is quite impressionable. The following points create affinity between us:
• complex alliance relations - joint work for mutual benefit
• social transfer of hunting methods
• complex vocalization of information, including regional group dialects in "talking" with each other
• sound imitation - the recognition of "name"
• interspecies cooperation
• parental relationships - care for youngsters, sometimes not even for their own.
• social games.
Dr Susanne Shultz, an evolutionary biologist in Manchester's School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, compared human ability to social interaction and development of relationships with dolphins and whales, which, thanks to an anatomically perfect brain, like humans, construct their communities and marine culture.
The only thing that is impossible for the giants of the marine world, in contrast to human, is the creation of mega-cities and technologies, in view of the underdevelopment of the thumbs.
The team used the social brain hypothesis (SBH) and cultural brain hypothesis (CBH).
According to SBH, the size of this organ serves as an evolutionary response to information-rich social environment. For the first time these scientific assumptions were applied to "intelligent" marine mammals.
The study paper has refuted earlier claims that the different structures of the human brain and cetaceans do not allow the latter to acquire higher cognitive and social skills. Dr. Kieran Fox, a neurologist at Stanford University, wonders - How can very diverse brain structure in very different species produce highly similar cognitive and social behaviours?" The scientists still have to answer this question.
The list of behavioral similarities between humans and cetaceans is quite impressionable. The following points create affinity between us:
• complex alliance relations - joint work for mutual benefit
• social transfer of hunting methods
• complex vocalization of information, including regional group dialects in "talking" with each other
• sound imitation - the recognition of "name"
• interspecies cooperation
• parental relationships - care for youngsters, sometimes not even for their own.
• social games.
Dr Susanne Shultz, an evolutionary biologist in Manchester's School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, compared human ability to social interaction and development of relationships with dolphins and whales, which, thanks to an anatomically perfect brain, like humans, construct their communities and marine culture.
The only thing that is impossible for the giants of the marine world, in contrast to human, is the creation of mega-cities and technologies, in view of the underdevelopment of the thumbs.
The team used the social brain hypothesis (SBH) and cultural brain hypothesis (CBH).
According to SBH, the size of this organ serves as an evolutionary response to information-rich social environment. For the first time these scientific assumptions were applied to "intelligent" marine mammals.
The study paper has refuted earlier claims that the different structures of the human brain and cetaceans do not allow the latter to acquire higher cognitive and social skills. Dr. Kieran Fox, a neurologist at Stanford University, wonders - How can very diverse brain structure in very different species produce highly similar cognitive and social behaviours?" The scientists still have to answer this question.
