Daniel Dennett, the philosopher, coined the phrase вЂњintentional stanceвЂќ to indicate the highest level of analysis by an organism, which is to understand otherвЂ™s mental state and predict their behaviour. Intentionality is an important concept in understanding consciousness. This study shows, for the first time, wild untrained monkeys communicating intentionally with unfamiliar humans using a novel communicative gesture. They gestured only when they encountered a human with food and stopped when they got theВ food. Finally, they persist in the communicative gesture until food is delivered. If the human is not paying attention, they change their posture to make their presence felt. They were able to figure out if the human is paying attention. This shows that the monkeys have the mental capability to communicate flexibly with humans. This is an evidence for underlyingВ intentionality.вЂќ They perform this gesture only when humans are directly looking at them. Adwait Deshpande, who is the first author in the paper, says, вЂњWe showed that monkeys use hand extension gesture depending on the attentional state of human receiver. To prove the intentionality of this gesture, the authors say that it passes the criteria for intentionality established by previous research in other monkey species. The authors say that this is the first documented evidence of such behaviour in monkeys in the wild. The monkeys persist until the food reward is obtained and made a specific coo-call during thisВ interaction. These monkeys also orient their head towards the human, monitoring their reaction and adjusting their posture to get the attention of the human. This is new behaviour, which is different from other food reaching or handling behaviour seen in the wild. When the human had food, the monkeys made a hand extension gesture with an open palm towards the human. In a new studyВ published in Scientific Reports,В they have showed that wild macaque monkeys make intentional novel communication with humans using vocal calls and gestures to ask for food. Anindya Sinha and his group from the National Institute of Advanced Studies, Bangalore, who study communication behaviour of troupes of wild bonnet macaques ( Macaca radiata) in the Bandipur area in Karnataka, have shown that wild bonnet macaques show intentionalityВ while signalling among conspecific members within a troupe. When it comes to wild monkeys, the issue is contentious.

However, intentionality can also occur without theory of mind, like in captive monkeys, where studies have shown intentional communication between monkeys and humanВ caregivers. David Premack, in his classic 1978 paperВ вЂDoes the chimpanzee have a theory of mind?вЂ™, showed that chimpanzees can also understand the intention of a human actor. This ability is called вЂ theory of mindвЂ™. Two communicating humans can understand each otherвЂ™s intentions, mental states and goals. This intentionality can manifest in different ways. One of the main features of language is intentionality, which means that the animal can understand the mental state of the animal it is communicating to. However, could their communication be considered a language system or is it just reflexive gesturing orВ calls? Monkeys can also communicate with other monkeys using gestures and vocal calls for example, they have separate calls for when they are in danger and for food availability. They can open latches, screw cap bottles and door handles, and are very efficient in finding food even in urban settings.

If you have ever lived in a place with a monkey menace, you would know that monkeys are highly intelligent and have an impressive ability to use tools.

Chimpanzee hand gestures