{"id":19207,"date":"2022-08-11T14:12:02","date_gmt":"2022-08-11T12:12:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.discoverwildlife.com\/?p=64199"},"modified":"2022-08-11T14:30:16","modified_gmt":"2022-08-11T12:30:16","slug":"can-animals-catch-yawns-off-humans","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/rss_feed\/can-animals-catch-yawns-off-humans\/","title":{"rendered":"Can animals catch yawns off humans?"},"content":{"rendered":"

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By Stuart Blackman\n \t\t<\/p>

Published: Thursday, 11 August 2022 at 12:00 am<\/p>

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No-one is sure why we yawn, although we do know that it increases levels of dopamine and serotonin in the brain. Yawning\u2019s not an activity restricted to humans, however.Mammals and other animals are also known to yawn\u2026 but do they catch yawns from one another and can they catch them from humans?<\/p>\n

What are yawns?<\/h2>\n
A yawn is a reflex in which a person \u2013 or animal \u2013 opens their jaw wide open, taking in a sharp, deep intake of breath and then a quick exhalation.<\/p>\n
Yawns tend to strike in moments of tedium or sleepiness. But these involuntary muscle contractions, involving an open mouth and a deep intake of breath, are anything but boring.<\/p>\n

Why do we yawn?<\/h2>\n
Yawns are mysterious things. The debate around their function remains\u2026 er\u2026 wide open. There are physiological possibilities, including the regulation of brain temperature or oxygen levels.<\/p>\n
Or perhaps the function of a yawn is a more social one \u2013 synchronising group behaviour, for example, or signalling empathy with others.<\/p>
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Why are yawns infectious?<\/h2>\n
Just as we\u2019re not entirely sure why<\/em> we yawn, we also don\u2019t really know why we seem to \u2018catch\u2019 them from one another. There are several theories as to why this might happen, with some believing that contagious yawning keeps people in the same state and sleep cycle<\/strong><\/a>, so we are able to work together.<\/p>\n
Another study suggests that yawning is a symptom of the brain\u2019s requirement to regulate its temperature<\/strong><\/a>.<\/p>\n

Do animals yawn?<\/h2>\nYawning occurs in all sorts of animals<\/strong><\/a>, from budgies to baboons, and have been linked to a range of functions, from stimulating alertness to co-ordinating group behaviour.<\/p>\n
In South American sealions<\/strong><\/a>, according to new research, yawning seems to be a signal of anxiety, occurring after aggressive interactions between individuals.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur data show that, just after an agonistic event, there is a peak of yawning in the aggressor and the victim, which may reflect anxiety of the subjects, or may function as a stress-releaser mechanism,\u201d says Clara Llamazares-Marti\u0301n of Spain\u2019s CEU Cardenal Herrera University.<\/p>\n
The findings chime with work on apes and monkeys, showing that yawning is more frequent in socially stressful situations.<\/p>\n
It might turn out that, in sealions, it serves to defuse social tension between adversaries. The team is now working on whether their yawns are contagious, like they are in humans and other apes. If that were the case, it would be evidence that sealions have a capacity for empathy.<\/p>\n
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Do animals yawn when humans yawn?<\/h2>\nThe contagiousness of yawns is good evidence that social behaviour is at least part of the story. So powerful is the urge that, in humans, it can be elicited just by hearing someone yawn or even talking about it.<\/p>\n