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Living with her family high above the ground

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in the northern tropical forests of Colombia,

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you will find Shakira,

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a cotton-top tamarin with a penchant for conversation.

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Say, "Hola!"

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Though you may not realize it,

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this one pound monkey communicates

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in a highly sophisticated language

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of 38 distinct calls

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based on variations of chirps and whistles.

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The response she just gave is

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known as a "B chirp",

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a call often directed at humans.

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To appreciate the complexities of Shakira's language,

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let's learn a few chirps and whistles,

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then examine how their combinations

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form grammatically structured sequences.

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The chirp Shakira used to greet us

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comes from a class of calls known as

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single frequency modulated syllables.

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This class is made up of short duration calls, or chirps,

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and long duration calls, like screams and squeals.

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Researchers have determined that there are eight

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different types of chirps categorized by

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stem upsweep, duration, peak frequency, and frequency change.

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In addition, each chirp has its own unique meaning.

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For example, Shakira's "C chirp" is used

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when she is approaching food,

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where as her "D chirp" is only used

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when she has the food in hand.

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Single whistles also exhibit a unique intention with each call

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and just as there are eight different chirps,

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there are five different whistles.

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Based on frequency modulation,

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single whistles are subdivided into four categories:

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squeaks, initially modulated whistles,

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terminally modulated whistles, and flat whistles.

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The language's quality of unique intention

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is wonderfully exemplified by the category

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of initially modulated whistles.

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These whistles change based on the proximity

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of Shakira to other members of her family.

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If Shakira is greater than .6 meters from her family,

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she'll sound a large initally modulated whistle.

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But if she's less than .6 meters from her family,

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she'll sound a small initially modulated whistle.

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Now that we've learned a few chirps and whistles,

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Shakira wants to show off by taking you

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through a quick day in her life with these calls.

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While heading towards a feeding tree for her first meal of the day,

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she says, (monkey noise),

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a call most often used in relaxed investigations.

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However, suddenly she spots the shadow of a hawk.

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"E chirp" for alarm.

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This call alerts her family to the presence of this predator,

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and Shakira jumps to the safety of an inner branch.

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The coast seems clear,

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so Shakira makes her way towards her dad.

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Wait, wait. Who is that?

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Ah, it's her younger brother, Carlos.

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Cotton-top tamarins often squeal during play wrestling.

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Uh-oh. He's playing a little too roughly, and Shakira screams,

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alerting her parents to help her.

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Her dad makes his way towards the ball of rolling fur

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and her brother stops.

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Shakira shakes herself

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and scratches herself to get the hair on her head

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back in place.

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Then Shakira spots another group of unfamiliar tamarins

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and hears their normal long call.

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She turns to her family. (Monkey noise)

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Did you catch that? First there was a chirp, then a whistle.

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This is what's known as a combination vocalization,

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a phrase that contains both a chirp and a whistle.

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These are two calls strung together to convey a message.

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The combination of these two elements

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alerts her family to the presence of another group,

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the "F chirp", and the distance they are away,

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the normal long call whistle.

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In other words, Shakira just said a sentence.

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Her simple demonstration is just the tip of the iceberg.

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She's got trills, chatters, multiple whistle calls,

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more combination vocalizations, even twitters.

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Yet sadly enough, we may not get to hear

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everything she has to say.

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Mixed in with chirping sonatas from high above

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is the constant thud of a machete chopping trees.

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Shakira's habitat in Colombia is being cut down,

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piece by piece,

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and if we don't work to protect

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the critically endangered cotton-top tamarin,

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it will become extinct in our lifetime.

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If the chirp from one tamarin to the next

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has proven to be more than just idle chit chat,

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imagine what else we have left to discover.

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Imagine what else Shakira can tell us.