We like to think that names are something only humans have. A way of saying this one is me, and that one is you. It turns out we’re not alone in that.
Bottlenose dolphins develop what scientists call a “signature whistle” – a unique sound that each dolphin creates for itself, usually within its first year of life. It works remarkably like a name. A dolphin will announce itself with its own whistle, and others can recognize exactly who’s “speaking.”
But it goes further. Researchers have discovered that dolphins will copy another dolphin’s signature whistle to get its attention – essentially calling each other by name. In careful experiments, when a dolphin heard its own signature whistle played back, it responded – much as you’d turn around if someone called your name across a room.
Even more touching: dolphins remember these names for an extraordinarily long time. In one study, a dolphin recognized the signature whistle of an old companion it hadn’t seen in more than 20 years – the longest social memory ever recorded in an animal other than ourselves.
This is what we’re slowly learning about dolphins: they live in rich social worlds, full of friendships, alliances, and individuals who matter to one another. They play. They cooperate. They grieve. And they call out, across the water, to the ones they know by name.
The next time you hear dolphins chattering offshore, remember – some of those calls may be one old friend saying another’s name.
