Category Communication

Smell is probably the most common basic means of animal communication. Even the most primitive animals react to odours given off by their own, or other species.Animals may use scents, to mark out territorial boundaries, to attract mates, to warn off intruders and predators or, in some cases, to attract prey. Animals of all kinds rely to a great extent on their hearing ability in order to succeed and survive, and this is called acoustic communication. Among mammals, generally speaking, small animals squeak, and large ones rumble. The acoustic communication signal most frequently heard by humans is, of course, bird song. The largest of all animals, the whales, appear to be experts in the art of communication by sound, with each whale of the same species having its own favourite ‘songs’ which it repeats at intervals.Visual signals may take the form of gestures and displays, facial grimaces, body posture or mimicry. Each species has its own way of using its facial expressions, body language, gestures and body markings to communicate effectively.At another level, animals may communicate a simple message through the art of mimicry. The markings on the wings of the peacock butterfly look like large eyes to frighten off its enemies. The same is true of the harmless hoverfly that resembles the wasp.

When a monkey makes faces at you, do you know that it is trying to communicate with you? Visual communication may take the form of facial grimaces, gestures, body language, displays, and even markings on the  A peacock’s extravagant display of feathers is a form of visual communication. The male rabbit will use the white underside of its tail to attract the attention of a female, while the female may use the white of her tail as a visual signal for her young to follow when she is leading them to the safety of the burrow.Dogs and wolves make use of body language, as do cats, monkeys and many other animals. The attitude of the tail when two wolves meet will indicate which of the two the superior is. Horses will hold their ears or tail in certain positions to signal pleasure or alarm. 

 It is true that animals cannot talk like we do, but they do make noises that other animals can understand, even if we can’t!Birds do this when they chirp and sing cats when they meow and purr, and dolphins when they click and whistle. Many of these noises translate to simple phrases like ‘I’m hungry’, ‘I’m angry’, ‘feed me’ and ‘leave me alone’.Other animals use signals and sign language to talk to each other. Bees do a complicated dance to tell other bees in which direction to go to find food. Howler monkeys will howl to tell other monkeys to keep off their territory, and some birds sing both to attract mates and defend their Will we ever be able to understand what animals are saying? Maybe, one day. It’s possible that, in the future, we’ll have computers so powerful that they’ll be able to decode the dolphin clicks even to translate Cuttlefish into English! 

If you rub your kitten under the ear, it will make a purring sound. Do you know why? Cats purr to let you know that they are feeling good! Sometimes, though, when they are hurt, they purr to comfort themselves.

 In short, purring is a cat’s way of communicating, and when a healthy cat purrs, it is a sign that it is happy and at peace. 

A special kind of postal system, which existed in the princely states of Travancore and Cochin, in Kerala, was known as the ‘Anchel’. It was introduced by a British officer Colonel John Monroe in 1811. He was the Resident of the English East India Company in Travancore and their political agent in Cochin. He was also the Dewan of Travancore State. In the beginning, the Anchel service was used to carry only royal implements, government letters, and flowers as offering to the Sree Padmanbhas swamy Temple at Thiruvananthapuram, owned by royal family of Travancore. Later, the system was opened to the public for a fee of one chakram (copper coin used in Travancore. One rupee was equal to 28 chakrams).

            The Anchel office was headed by an ‘Anchel Pillai’ (the post master). Each Anchel sepoy had to carry the postal articles for a fixed distance, and then hand it over to another person. It was like a relay race.

            The Anchel sepoy used to run with a metal rod fixed with bells, in his hand. The rule was that when people heard the sound of these bells they had to make way for him. Postal runners were allowed to occupy the centre of the road, and any obstruction made to the postal runners was considered a serious offence.

            The Anchel system continued even after the Travancore and Cochin states were brought together to form the Travancore Cochin States in 1949. In 1951, the department of Anchel was merged with the Central Government’s Postal Department

How does the letter that you send reach its destination? In early days, mail was carried by riders on horseback. Sometimes, boats and carriages would also carry parcels and letters. Fees had to be paid in person to the carrier, both by the person sending the mail, and the person receiving it.

        In 1858, letter boxes were introduced ob streets. People did not have to go to the post office to mail their letters or pay fees. Free delivery of service was also started by 1863. Letters and parcels were carried by train to different cities and later on, to villages in rural areas as well. The coming of railways really increased the efficiency of the postal systems, and made delivery much faster. Today, railroads, automobiles, and airplanes are all used by the Post Office to bring your mail to you as fast as possible.