Animal Talk: Breaking the Codes of Animal Language (Paperback) (ISBN-13: 9780743201582)

If animal behavior is mostly instinctual, why do animals need to communicate? Is it possible that there is a universal language spoken and understood by all animals on earth, including humans? Do barks, growls, rumbles, chirps, yips, and meows have communicative meanings?
"No matter what species," writes acclaimed science journalist Tim Friend, "we're all concerned with the same topics of conversation -- sex, real estate, who's boss, and what's for dinner." In Animal Talk, Friend draws upon years of field research, interviews with preeminent scientists, and lively personal anecdotes to find out how our animal neighbors communicate and what their languages mean. From bird calls to whale songs, laughing hyenas to rattling snakes, an elephant cry in the jungle to the bark of a Chihuahua in his own backyard, Friend tells the grand story of animal communication through the sounds, stripes, scents, and signals of the animals themselves.

Author: Tim Friend
ISBN-10: 0743201582
ISBN-13: 9780743201582
Publisher: Atria Books
Language: English
Published: 02/09/2005
Pages: 288
Format: Paperback
Weight: 0.56lbs
Size: 8.06h x 5.54w x 0.72d