>>I don't know, Fred. Try explaining how to get to Spencer Island from
>>Seattle using only such grunts
>>Gene.
>
>As I envision it, it's 8 grunts, 4 finger points, a nose wrinkling, and a
>satisfied smile (there's a lot of body language possible).
>

I appreciate the grunting and nose wrinkling comments of Gene and Dennis,
as they precisely illustrate my point. Telling someone to be at Spencer
Island is an attempt to modify their position in time in space. Animals (&
plants) also have very elaborate communication systems for communicating
information about spacing, positioning, and orientation. This can be in the
form of visual displays, acoustic signals, mechanoreception, and the
wonderfully complex chemical communication of insects and plants. In fact,
plants have been found to release chemicals in response to pests that are
eating their foliage. These chemicals attract predators, which then attack
the foliage eating pests, thereby reduced the level damage to the plant.
There is also some evidence suggesting plants can communicate with other
plants over considerable distances using airborne chemical signals. These
airborne signals could might be used to synchronize the timing of flowering
or to warn closely related plants about some defoliating pests, and the
appropriate counter-measures that should be mounted
You only have to watch you back yard bird feeder to realize that
there is plenty of signaling, bluffing, warning, and communication going on
within and between species. Similar to a human giving directions to
Spencer Island, the basic message is same: alter you position in time and
space. Language is very good for communication information about future
events, but the meaning of the song remains the same. I recognize Gene's
point that language is unique to humans, however there are many unusual
and complex commuincations that have evolved in different biotic systems.

Fred.