The Functions of Animal Communication (AQA GCSE Psychology): Revision Note
Exam code: 8182
Survival & reproduction
Animals are more hard-wired for survival than human beings are
Animals have to rely on and be guided by their instincts: they are not able to reason, reflect, or make considered decisions in the same way that human beings can
Animal communication is entirely sense-based and falls into four main types:
Visual (sight)
Auditory (hearing)
Olfactory (smell, taste)
Tactile (touch)
Animal survival communication
Alarm signals are given off by animals to promote survival by allowing conspecifics to escape from a predator
A downside of the alarm call signal is that it also works as a signal to the predator that prey is close at hand and thus decrease the prey’s chances of survival
Some examples include:
Blackbirds (and many other animals and birds) emit a shrill alarm call to signal to others that a predator is nearby
Vervet monkeys produce acoustically distinct calls to distinguish different predators i.e. a specific call linked to either pythons, eagles, leopards or baboons
Not all alarm signals are auditory. The white tail flashes of deer act as a visual alarm signal to warn other deer of a nearby predator
Animal reproduction communication
Display signals are used by an animal to show off the reproductive advantages of mating with them, to conspecifics (i.e. ‘look at me, I’m awesome’)
Some tree frogs croak songs to attract mates
The most popular males produce offspring that are faster and larger than the offspring of less popular males
Female guppy fish prefer males with brighter orange spots on their body because it means they are better at finding high-quality food than those with less bright spots
Male peacocks show off their dazzling array of coloured feathers to females
Jumping spiders perform complicated dances in which they wave their legs and vibrate their bodies
Male pipefish (a type of seahorse) prefer females with more dramatic-looking stripes on their body
Examiner Tips and Tricks
Animals cannot communicate using words i.e. they cannot talk. This seems like an obvious point to make but it is always worth noting it in an exam. One of the major differences between humans and animals is that humans have vocal chords (and a higher level of cognitive ability) which allow them to converse, and express ideas, thoughts, feelings and opinions.
Remember that animals can engage in non-verbal behaviour but they cannot produce words (verbal communication) i.e. animals can communicate via their senses but not via words.
Territory & food
For an animal it is important to ‘mark’ their territory so that other animals do not ‘invade’ their patch, e.g.
Dogs urinating in specific locations
Cats rubbing their cheeks, paws and flanks against surfaces which activates their scent glands
Scent marking ensures that other animals know that this territory is ‘taken’ and that the animal which has lain down their scent is the ‘owner’ of that territory
Males tend to mark territory more than females with dominant males marking territory the most
Scent marking forms a central part of competition between groups of animals for territory
Lemurs engage in ‘stink fights’ to win the rights to a specific territory
White rhinos deposit piles of dung (which they then drag their feet through) to mark territory
Scent marking is more evolutionarily useful than fighting for territorial rights as fighting puts individual animals at risk of serious injury or death
Pheromones are used by some animals to communicate a range of signals, one of which is the location of food
Insects such as ants and bees employ pheromones successfully to mark a food trail
Sharks have an extremely sensitive sense of smell, able to detect blood and other chemicals in water at very low concentrations
Snakes use their tongue to detect scent particles in the air by flicking their tongue out and then pressing it against specialised scent receptors on the roof of their mouth
How a snake smells dinner
Worked Example
Here is an example of a question you might be asked on this topic - for AO1.
AO1: You need to demonstrate knowledge and understanding of key concepts, ideas, theories and research.
AO2: You need to apply your knowledge and understanding, usually referring to the ‘stem’ in order to do so (the stem is the example given before the question)
AO3: You need to analyse and evaluate key concepts, ideas, theories and research.
After each featured question there is a ‘model’ answer i.e. one which would achieve top marks in the exam.
Question: Outline one function of animal communication. Use an example to explain your answer. [3 ]
AO1: 1 mark for identifying a function.
AO2: 2 marks for an appropriate example.
Model answer:
1 mark for identifying a function: select from one of the following:
Animals communicate for the purpose of survival/reproduction/territory/food
2 marks for an appropriate example (here are two examples: the first is relevant to survival, the second is relevant to territory):
Animals may emit a specific alarm call to warn conspecifics that a predator is close thereby ensuring the continued survival of the species.
Animals may produce a scent marker using either faeces/urine or scent glands which is designed to designate a particular territory as theirs, thus warning off competitors.
Unlock more, it's free!
Join the 100,000+ Students that ❤️ Save My Exams
the (exam) results speak for themselves:
Was this revision note helpful?
Build on this topic
