The MeatEater Podcast – Ep. 838: How To Translate Animal Language

Host: Steven Rinella
Guest: George Buman (sculptor, bronze artist, naturalist, animal language and intelligence expert, author of “Eavesdropping on Animals”)
Date: February 23, 2026

Overview

This episode dives deep into the fascinating realm of animal communication and “translating animal language,” blending firsthand field insights, cultural stories, and science. Renowned guest George Buman—an accomplished artist, naturalist, and animal vocalization expert—joins Steven Rinella and the crew to demystify how animals communicate, what those sounds mean, and how learning to “listen” to wildlife can permanently reshape your relationship with the natural world. Expect wide-ranging, often humorous discussion on everything from prairie dog and bird dialects to the intelligence of ravens, with side tangents into conservation, hunting ethics, folklore, and tracking skills.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Introduction to Animal Language and George Buman’s Background

• Animal Imitations: George Buman opens by vocalizing several animal calls (turkey, coyote, wolf, raven, chickadee), demonstrating the complexity and accuracy possible even without instruments.

  • Notable moment: Buman’s raven impression and discussion of its versatility.
  • [03:21-05:11]

• Why Study Animal Language?

  • Buman: “These [animal calls] obviously mean stuff… they can show you things you would never, ever have found.” [06:17]
  • Rinella sets up the show’s theme: It’s not just about recognizing animal noises but understanding their meanings and why animals vocalize.

2. Cultural Parallels: Human Relationship with Animals and Shared Myths

• Circumpolar Bear Culture
  • Rinella describes the uncanny similarities of bear myths among human cultures across the northern hemisphere—especially the sacred way bear hunts and interactions are ritualized.
  • “You cannot explain it—how some dude in Siberia, some dude in North America, some dude in Europe, have the same concept…” [09:54, Rinella]

3. On Odors, Senses, and the "Nasal Ranger"

• Offbeat but revealing discussion about human/animal perception of smells and defenses, sparked by a correction about skunk scent and lab-made stink.
• The Nasal Ranger: An instrument for measuring odor intensity, leading to jokes about using it to settle household disputes.
  • “I want one so bad, because I want to be able to use it in arguments with my wife.” [23:01, Rinella]
  • “The Nasal Ranger… applies a number to a thing that is just entirely subjective.” [28:31, Rinella]

4. Prairie Dogs: Titans of Animal Vocabulary

• Greatest Vocabulary:

  • “Prairie dogs… have incredible vocabulary that goes down to the level of: There's a guy walking through the colony with a green shirt on, and he's tall… There's a badger, there's a hawk, hawk's flying fast…” [34:43, Buman]
  • Computer analysis and field experiments show prairie dogs can invent “new words” for unfamiliar objects [36:25].

• Research Anecdotes:

  • Vervet monkey calls for different threats were played until a specific monkey became the “boy who cried wolf.” Elders then ignored his alarms, showing complex social learning. [40:01, Rinella]

5. The Limits of Human Perception: Hearing and Understanding Animal Language

• Sensory Worlds:

  • “Even if we could… speak the same language, we still wouldn’t have a clue what they're talking about… there's culture behind and underneath all that language.” [52:03, Buman]
  • Birds and mammals split and remix sounds (phonemes) in ways we struggle to perceive; frequency and speed matter.

• Techniques:

  • Buman and others now use bioacoustics (recorders running 24/7) plus field notes to sync behavior to specific animal vocalizations.

6. Case Studies in Animal Language

Turkeys:

• Are All Gobbles Alike?
  • “A gobble isn't a gobble…. He's gobbling in context to who's around them.” [57:02–58:35, Buman]
  • Young males can do “full gobbles” if big toms are absent; double/triple gobbles may indicate excitement or intent.

Ravens:

• Territorial and Excited Calls:

  • “That three note thing is their song, their territorial call that they use to keep the riff raff out.” [61:45–62:04, Buman]
  • Context alters the phrase: more notes/repetitions when food is present or when rivals appear.

• Food “Meat Call”:

  • Juveniles and non-territorial adult ravens produce a caterwauling call when they find carcasses to summon reinforcements—helping evade dominant territorial pairs.
  • “That call doesn’t mean any food, it means meat, really…” [71:18, Buman]
  • Practical value: listen for these to find kills (or bears) in the wild. [75:01–76:38]

• Attack & Alarm Calls:

  • Ravens use distinctive calls for threats such as golden eagles (consistent, serious repeated notes—a known cue for biologists), and possibly distinct calls for bald eagles.
  • “What happens when there’s a golden eagle? …It’s a very consistent, uniform series of notes…” [90:40, Buman]

Squirrels:

• Air vs. Ground Threat Alarms:
  • “The chucks [in their call] are typically something on the ground. Leaves off the chuck, it's typically for a threat from the air.” [102:53–103:02, Buman]

7. Animal Accents and Dialects

• Local dialects occur—ravens in different regions have different vocalizations, even “accents.”
  • “Totally different accent in California. You can see…pockets of agreed upon sound culture.” [104:47, Buman]

8. Animals Talk About Humans—And About Each Other

• “We're the ones in isolation. We are out of the conversation.” [106:17, Buman]
• Animals not only code communication about threats, food, etc., but about individual humans: birds remember regulars versus newcomers; pigeons recognize faces even with changing clothes.

9. How to Listen: Practical Tips & Field Exercises

The Sit Spot Exercise

• Buman has students spread out for an hour in nature, journal only sounds and animals. Most report “nothing” for 40 min until, with patience, the whole scene resets and comes alive.
  • “We have never…seen the environment we live…in anything other than a state of alarm and disruption…that we have created ourselves.” [112:20, Buman]

Silence Is an Alarm

• “Silence is the most overlooked and most common alarm in nature that exists.” [116:06, Buman]
• Animals also cue into intentionality—predators and even photographers trigger alarm with focused attention.

Universal Patterns

• You don’t need to know all bird species. “You learn the birds at home and the patterns you find anywhere you go are the same…they’re going to be filled by different species.” [118:39, Buman]

10. Ethics, Honoring, and Conservation

• Buman discusses how deeply engaging with animal language changed how, and whether, he hunts, shifting from “what” to “who” one takes from nature.
  • Story: “Mama Deer” who, after years of cautious coexistence, chose Buman’s doorstep to die, seeking refuge. [127:17, Buman]
  • “Now I have to reckon with the fact that it’s not what I’m killing as much anymore, it’s who.” [128:39, Buman]

11. Art, Teaching, and Further Resources

• Art as Souvenir: Buman’s bronze sculptures are based on “individual stories that I’ve been let in on…forces me to see details I would miss otherwise.” [135:35, Buman]

• He shares his method of studying animal anatomy (roadkill data, measurements) and how art and naturalist work reinforce one another.

• Yellowstone Summit: Online educational event with over 30 experts—accessible, affordable, and full of content for enthusiasts, families, guides, and educators.

  • yellowstonesummit.com [142:47]

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

On Animal Vocabulary (Prairie Dogs)

"They even came up with a new word, something they'd never heard ‘em say before..."
— George Buman, [36:25]

On Ravens' Intelligence and Social Learning

“They're the best informants in the wild. If you listen to them, they will tell you what you would miss.”
— George Buman, [74:47]

On The Limits of Human Knowledge

“Even with AI...we still wouldn't have a clue what [animals] are talking about. There’s a culture behind and underneath all that language.”
— George Buman, [52:03]

On The Ethics of Hunting

“It's not what I'm killing as much anymore, it's who…When you enter into those spaces with humility, nature's pretty resilient. It gives you more latitude than you would have otherwise.”
— George Buman, [128:39–129:54]

On Listening and Slowing Down

“The most common alarm in nature? Silence.”
— George Buman, [116:06]

Timestamps for Key Segments

• Animal Impersonations & Purpose: [03:21–05:56]
• What Animal Language Means: [06:17–06:46]
• Circumpolar Bear Culture/Ethnography: [08:32–10:27]
• Corrections & Skunk Smells / Nasal Ranger: [12:48–28:59]
• Prairie Dog Vocabulary: [34:43–37:26]
• Monkey ‘boy who cried wolf’ anecdote: [38:35–40:18]
• Birds’ Acoustic Perception & Sperm Whale Analogy: [47:30–50:36]
• Turkeys' Gobbles in Context: [57:02–59:40]
• Raven Social & Food Calls (including “meat call”): [60:51–76:57]
• Dialects & Regional Variance: [104:09–104:47]
• Human as Out-Group in Animal Communication: [106:17–106:24]
• Sit Spot Field Exercise: [109:19–113:22]
• Silence as Alarm: [116:06]
• Pigeons Recognizing Faces: [121:20]
• On Shifting Hunting Ethics — ‘Mama Deer’ story: [127:17–128:39]
• Art & Sculpture as Wildlife Storytelling: [135:35–139:12]
• Yellowstone Summit Education Plug: [141:53–143:59]

Final Notes

Tone & Language:
The episode is rich with field anecdotes, irreverent humor, and a deep sense of wonder. Both Steven Rinella and George Buman share a tone that’s approachable, thoughtful, and grounded in both outdoor tradition and open-minded inquiry.

For Listeners:
Whether you’re a hunter, birder, guide, tracker, or just a curious outdoorsperson, this episode will enhance how you experience animal encounters and encourage you to truly listen, both for what animals are saying—and what you might be missing.