馬和狗共享通用的游戲語言

馬和狗共享通用的游戲語言

All animals play. Running, rolling and wrestling with each other is a way for them to have fun, of course. But it also seems to be how they communicate and strengthen bonds with each other.

所有的動物都會玩耍。當然，奔跑、翻滾和摔跤是它們娛樂的一種方式。但這似乎也是它們交流和加強彼此之間的聯(lián)系的方式。

When a dog comes up to another dog, front legs bowed and his tail high and wagging, his buddy knows he wants to play. But new research shows that this play behavior is surprisingly similar when horses and dogs play.

當一只狗走近另一只狗，前腿彎著，尾巴高高擺動，它的伙伴知道它想玩。但新的研究表明，馬和狗玩耍時的這種玩耍行為驚人地相似。

MARY JO DILONARDO

"Up to now, most studies have focused on dog-human play due to the important implications such studies have in understanding the peculiar relationship we establish with our pets," researchers from Italy wrote in the journal Behavioural Processes. "Here, we focused on social play between dogs and horses."

來自意大利的研究人員在《行為過程》雜志上寫道:“到目前為止，大多數(shù)研究都集中在人和狗的玩耍上，因為這類研究對理解我們與寵物建立的特殊關(guān)系具有重要意義。在這里，我們關(guān)注的是狗和馬之間的社交游戲。”

To study interspecies communication, Elisabetta Palagi and her colleagues from the University of Pisa found 20 YouTube videos of dogs and horses playing where their interactions lasted at least 30 seconds. They analyzed the videos, looking for specific patterns of play.

為了研究物種間的交流，來自比薩大學的Elisabetta Palagi和她的同事們在YouTube上找到了20段狗和馬玩耍的視頻，這些視頻中狗和馬的互動持續(xù)了至少30秒。他們分析了視頻，尋找特定的游戲模式。

They found that while playing, both dogs and horses often had relaxed, open mouths — which is a common playful facial expression in mammals. Some also copied each others' movements, like pretending to bite, playing with an object, or rolling on their backs on the ground.

他們發(fā)現(xiàn)，在玩耍時，狗和馬通常會放松地張大嘴巴——這是哺乳動物中常見的嬉戲面部表情。有些還會模仿彼此的動作，比如假裝咬人，玩東西，或者在地上翻身。

The team also found that the dogs and horses mimicked each others' facial expressions. This behavior — called rapid facial mimicry — has been seen before in dogs, primates, meerkats and sun bears, points out National Geographic. But it has never been documented between animals of different species.

研究小組還發(fā)現(xiàn)，狗和馬會互相模仿對方的面部表情。《國家地理》指出，這種被稱為快速面部模仿的行為以前在狗、靈長類動物、貓鼬和太陽熊身上也見過。但在不同種類的動物之間卻從未有過這樣的記錄。

"Taken together, our results suggest that, despite the difference in size, the phylogenetic distance, and differences in the behavioral repertoire, dogs and horses are able to fine-tune their actions thus reducing the probability of misunderstanding and escalating into aggression."

“總的來說，我們的研究結(jié)果表明，盡管狗和馬的體型不同、進化距離不同、行為方式也不同，但它們能夠微調(diào)自己的行為，從而減少誤解并升級為攻擊性的可能性。”

Why communication matters

為什么溝通很重要

A 2,000-pound horse can frolic with a relatively tiny dog because the two are able to communicate their intentions.

一只2000磅重的馬可以和一只相對較小的狗玩耍，因為它們可以交流。

"It's an important study because it shows how two animals who look and behave so differently can nevertheless manage to negotiate how to play in a way that's comfortable for both," Barbara Smuts, a behavioral ecologist at the University of Michigan, told National Geographic.

“這是一項重要的研究，因為它展示了兩只外表和行為如此不同的動物是如何設(shè)法協(xié)商如何以雙方都感到舒服的方式玩耍的，”密歇根大學的行為生態(tài)學家芭芭拉·斯麥斯告訴《國家地理》雜志。

"It's even more noteworthy given the large size difference between horses and dogs. The dog is vulnerable to injury by the horse, and the horse has a deeply ingrained tendency to fear animals who resemble wolves."

“考慮到馬和狗的巨大體型差異，這就更值得注意了。”狗很容易受到馬的傷害，而馬對像狼這樣的動物有一種根深蒂固的恐懼傾向。”

Next up, the researchers write, is exploring the role of developmental pathways and familiarity in shaping Interspecies communication that "can be at the basis of a universal language of play."

接下來，研究人員寫道，將探索發(fā)展路徑和熟悉度在形成物種間交流中的作用，而這種交流“可能是一種普遍的游戲語言的基礎(chǔ)”。