The transmission of a signal from one animal to another such that the sender benefits, on average, from the response of the response of the recipient. Communication signals are thought to be adaptive . Tons of work focuses on trying to figure out how signals and responses are adaptive.
Signals can be discrete or graded.
Give different alarm calls for each predator. Vervet monkey baby. Adults don t reinforce correct behavior of offspring when offspring are practicing their alarm calls. Adult Vervets would attempt to warn their offspring about potential dangers to them. Turns out that baboons present an increased risk to babies as compared to adults.