How do apes communicate

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Dr. A.A. Quraishy

Monkeys and apes may not speak like humans, but they have their own unique ways of communicating. They use sounds, facial expressions, and body movements to express feelings, warn others of danger, and maintain order within their groups.

The signals that animals use cannot exactly be compared to human languages. Whether you speak English, French or Japanese depends upon where you were born, and which languages you have learnt since. However, if you cannot speak Japanese, there are still things that you would be able to tell if you met a Japanese person who could not speak English. You could recognize them as human and as male or female. You could tell by looking at them and listening to some of the sounds that they made whether they were happy, friendly, angry or unhappy. Laughter, smiles, scowls and tears mean the same to all mankind. The ability to understand these signals is born in us.

Like us, monkeys and apes use some signals which are designed to be seen, and others which are sounds, but their signals are not the same as ours. You can only understand them if you have learned their special kind of language.

Monkeys of Africa and Asia make a rapidly repeated sound by smacking their lips together. This means roughly the same as the human smile, but you would never guess unless you had been told, or had spent many hours watching them. The easiest primate signals for us to understand are threat signals, such as a fixed stare with raised eyebrows. However, monkeys and apes do not only signal with their faces. The coloring of other parts of the body, and the way they are held help too.

The parts of a monkey's body used for signaling are colored so that they show up. In the forests where most primates live it is not possible to see far because the leafy branches get in the way. Under these conditions sound signals can be very useful.

Gibbons use whooping calls to warn rivals of their own kind to keep away. Some of them, like the siamang of Malaya and Sumatra, have special vocal sacs to give their voices extra carrying power.

When a macaque feels fierce towards another one, it first stares, then shows its teeth. Bobbing the head up and down shows a still fiercer mood.

Not all monkeys are equal within the same troop. Those which are stronger or bolder than the others are treated with great respect. You can see the rank of a monkey at a glance by the way it behaves when it meets others.

Gorillas usually go on all fours on the ground, but when they are angry they stand up and beat their chests. This is a signal of warning. It lets other gorillas, or enemies of any other kind, know that the gorilla making the signal is not to be trifled with. Usually the warning is enough. The offender retreats, and there is no need for fighting.

The leopard is a fierce hunter, and eats monkeys and apes when it can. It is stronger than a chimpanzee, but chimpanzees find safety in numbers. A troop of chimpanzees acting together and clever enough to use branches as clubs can sometimes drive off the attack.

It is the job of the largest males to defend their baboon troop. They have powerful teeth, but against the ruthless attack of a pack of wild hunting dogs their defense is not always successful.

Of all the monkeys and apes, only adult gorillas are big and strong enough to fear no enemies other than human beings. All other kinds of monkeys and apes must keep a keen watch for danger, which may come from any direction. Eagles may swoop from above, and wild cats as large as the leopard can climb trees with ease.