動(dòng)物也會(huì)笑嗎？

Laughing is a way for people to connect and bond. Its sound is usually recognizable although reasons for laughing could vary across groups and individuals. But how about animals? Do they also laugh?

笑是人類溝通和聯(lián)系的一種方式。這類聲音通常是可識(shí)別的，雖然笑的原因可能因人而異。但是動(dòng)物呢?它們也會(huì)笑嗎?

So, if they do laugh, were the causes that trigger their laughter resembles that of humans? Typically, humans laugh to express a range of emotions, from positive feelings to negative ones like disgust. Humans also laugh when they hear a joke or see something funny.

那么，如果它們真的笑了，引發(fā)它們笑的原因是否與人類相似?通常，人類通過笑來表達(dá)一系列的情緒，從積極的情緒到厭惡的消極情緒。當(dāng)聽到笑話或看到有趣的東西時(shí)，也會(huì)笑。

Laughing is usually only associated with humans and possibly some primates, but a recent study shows that they are not the only mammals that enjoy good laughter.

笑通常只與人類和一些靈長類動(dòng)物有關(guān)，但最近的一項(xiàng)研究表明，我們并不是唯一享有笑的哺乳動(dòng)物。

圖源：Wikimedia Commons

Scientists at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) revealed that there are dozens of animals that can laugh. In total, BGR reported that the team has managed to identify 65 different creatures that laugh.

加州大學(xué)洛杉磯分校(UCLA)的科學(xué)家透露，有幾十種動(dòng)物都會(huì)笑。BGR報(bào)告說，研究小組總共成功識(shí)別出65種會(huì)笑的生物。

Animal vocalizations sometimes sound like a burst of laughter, but scientists said that not all of these are linked to playing.

動(dòng)物的叫聲有時(shí)聽起來像一陣笑聲，但科學(xué)家說，并不是所有這些都與玩耍有關(guān)。

The team identified playfulness as a key in differentiating animal vocalizations that are similar to the sound of human laughter and those sounds that only sound like laughter. After all, animals make vocalizations that may sound as if they are laughing but in truth, they are in danger, or perhaps it is a defense mechanism they use against predators.

研究小組認(rèn)為，玩耍是區(qū)分動(dòng)物叫聲的關(guān)鍵，動(dòng)物叫聲類似于人類的笑聲，而這些叫聲僅僅只是聽起來像笑聲。畢竟，動(dòng)物發(fā)出的聲音聽起來可能像是在笑，但事實(shí)上，它們可能處于危險(xiǎn)之中，或者這是它們用來抵御捕食者的一種防御機(jī)制。

In that sense, researchers pointed out very interesting conclusions, linking laughter and panting. They believe that laughter originated from heavy breathing during play.

從這個(gè)意義上說，研究人員指出了非常有趣的結(jié)論，將笑聲和喘息聯(lián)系起來。他們認(rèn)為笑是由于玩耍時(shí)呼吸沉重引起的。

As researchers wrote in their study, "Play vocalizations and human laughter: a comparative review," published in Bioacoustics:

正如研究人員發(fā)表在《生物聲學(xué)》上的研究報(bào)告——《播放發(fā)聲和人類的笑聲：比較評(píng)論》中寫道的：

"Our review indicates that vocal play signals are usually inconspicuous, although loud vocalizations, which suggest a broadcast function, are present in humans and some other species. Spontaneous laughter in humans shares acoustic and functional characteristics with play vocalizations across many species, but most notably with other great apes. Play vocalizations in primates and other mammals often include sounds of panting, supporting the theory that human laughter evolved from an auditory cue of labored breathing during play."

“我們的綜述表明，盡管人類和其他一些物種中，存在著廣播功能的大聲發(fā)聲，但發(fā)聲信號(hào)通常不明顯。在許多物種中，人類自發(fā)的笑聲與許多物種的游戲發(fā)聲具有相同的聲學(xué)和功能特征，最明顯的是與其他類人猿。靈長類和其他哺乳動(dòng)物的游戲發(fā)聲通常包括喘息聲，這也印證了人類的笑聲是從玩耍時(shí)費(fèi)力呼吸的聽覺線索進(jìn)化而來的理論。”