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Cerebral Cortex Advance Access originally published online on September 11, 2008
Cerebral Cortex 2009 19(5):1151-1157; doi:10.1093/cercor/bhn157
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© The Author 2008. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oxfordjournals.org

Visualizing Vocal Perception in the Chimpanzee Brain

Jared P. Taglialatela1,2, Jamie L. Russell2, Jennifer A. Schaeffer2 and William D. Hopkins2,3

1 Clayton State University, Department of Natural Sciences, Morrow, GA, USA, 2 Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Atlanta, GA, USA, 3 Agnes Scott College, Department of Psychology, Decatur, GA, USA

Address correspondence to Jared P. Taglialatela, PhD, Department of Natural Sciences, Clayton State University, 2000 Clayton State Boulevard, Morrow, GA 30260, USA. Email: jtaglialatela{at}clayton.edu.

The study of nonhuman primate vocal–auditory behavior continues to provide novel insights into the origins of human language. However, data on the neural systems involved in the perception and processing of conspecific vocalizations in great apes are virtually absent in the scientific literature, yet are critical for understanding the evolution of language. Here we used positron emission tomography to examine the neurological mechanisms associated with the perception of species-specific vocalizations in chimpanzees. The data indicate right-lateralized activity in the chimpanzee posterior temporal lobe, including the planum temporale, in response to certain calls, but not others. In addition, important differences are apparent when these data are compared with those published previously from monkey species suggesting that there may be marked differences in the way chimpanzees and macaque monkeys perceive and process conspecific vocalizations. These results provide the first evidence of the neural correlates of auditory perception in chimpanzees and offer unprecedented information concerning the origins of hemispheric specialization in humans.

Key Words: ape communication • language evolution • positron emission tomography • vocalization


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