Communicative and Cognitive Underpinnings of Animal Group Movement

The topic of collective animal behaviour has seen a surge of interest in recent years, with the diversity of organisms under study ranging from bacteria to humans in crowds. A large part of this research has been devoted to the identification of the mechanisms underlying decision making in the context of collective movement. In this chapter, we provide an overview of different processes that have been invoked to explain group coordination. Using baboons as a model, we illustrate the importance of signalling behaviour and behaviour-reading to achieve group movement, and we discuss the cognitive processes associated with collective action. We conclude by evaluating the differences in human collective action compared to collective action in other animals, with particular regard for the intentional structure of human communication.