Division of vocal signaling in cooperating marmoset dyads
- 1Yale University
Abstract
Communication enables partners to coordinate actions toward shared goals, but how vocal communication is organized during cooperation remains poorly understood. We recorded vocalizations from three common marmoset (Callithrix jacchus) dyads as they learned a mutual cooperation task requiring coordinated lever pulls for reward. Vocal behavior was divided by social hierarchy: dominants produced t-peeps, whereas subordinates produced chirps. Interestingly, dominant t-peeps followed failed cooperative pulls, peaked when cooperative bouts broke down, and declined after learning. By contrast, subordinate chirps followed successful pulls, accumulated during sustained cooperation, and persisted after learning. Each call was linked to the task role of the caller: dominant animals t-peeped more in sessions they led, and subordinates chirped mainly after cooperations they initiated, associations that sharpened with learning. Thus, social rank determined which vocal signal a partner used, whereas task role and the state of cooperation determined when to communicate. These complementary vocal signals of failure and success reveal how hierarchy, task role and task phase organize communication during joint action in cooperating marmosets.
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BibTeX
@misc{nandy2026division,
title = {{Division of vocal signaling in cooperating marmoset dyads}},
author = {G. Nandy and O. C. Meisner and W. Shi and A. S. Nandy and M. P. Jadi and S. W. C. Chang},
howpublished = {bioRxiv},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.64898/2026.10.15.758668},
url = {https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.10.15.758668v1},
note = {CC BY-NC-ND},
}
RIS
TY - UNPB
TI - Division of vocal signaling in cooperating marmoset dyads
AU - G. Nandy
AU - O. C. Meisner
AU - W. Shi
AU - A. S. Nandy
AU - M. P. Jadi
AU - S. W. C. Chang
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/15
PB - bioRxiv
DO - 10.64898/2026.10.15.758668
UR - https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.10.15.758668v1
AB - Communication enables partners to coordinate actions toward shared goals, but how vocal communication is organized during cooperation remains poorly understood. We recorded vocalizations from three common marmoset (Callithrix jacchus) dyads as they learned a mutual cooperation task requiring coordinated lever pulls for reward. Vocal behavior was divided by social hierarchy: dominants produced t-peeps, whereas subordinates produced chirps. Interestingly, dominant t-peeps followed failed cooperative pulls, peaked when cooperative bouts broke down, and declined after learning. By contrast, subordinate chirps followed successful pulls, accumulated during sustained cooperation, and persisted after learning. Each call was linked to the task role of the caller: dominant animals t-peeped more in sessions they led, and subordinates chirped mainly after cooperations they initiated, associations that sharpened with learning. Thus, social rank determined which vocal signal a partner used, whereas task role and the state of cooperation determined when to communicate. These complementary vocal signals of failure and success reveal how hierarchy, task role and task phase organize communication during joint action in cooperating marmosets.
ER -