PRELIMINARY STUDY ON THE USE OF SOUND AND ACOUSTICS IN IGBO CULTURAL COMMUNICATION

Language had been a veritable tool for communication among homo sapiens and had been described as human specific. However, there are several extra linguistic forms of communication that have been made possible also by sound and acoustic effects as in language production. Based on the foregoing, the paper investigates non verbal forms of communication among the Igbo people of the south eastern Nigeria. The production of sounds and acoustic effects from various traditional instruments are studied. Also, also various parts of the body other than the normal vocal sounds are investigated. Furthermore, the paper studied the use of these sounds in communication, especially in cultural communication among the Igbo people. We adopt the descriptive survey method and use the theoretical framework of oramedia an aspect ethno-cultural communication in exploring the dynamics of extra-linguistic sounds in Igbo cultural communication. The paper discovers that sound patterns and acoustic effects (extra linguistic) other than the sounds from the vocal tract system of man play a significant role in human communication, especially in cultural communication. Key words: sound, acoustic effects, extra-linguistic communication, non verbal communication, cultural communicatio

Population structure and evolutionary history of the greater cane rat (Thryonomys swinderianus) from the Guinean Forests of West Africa

Grasscutter (Thryonomys swinderianus) is a large-body old world rodent found in sub-Saharan Africa. The body size and the unique taste of the meat of this major crop pest have made it a target of intense hunting and a potential consideration as a micro-livestock. However, there is insufficient knowledge on the genetic diversity of its populations across African Guinean forests. Herein, we investigated the genetic diversity, population structures and evolutionary history of seven Nigerian wild grasscutter populations together with individuals from Cameroon, Republic of Benin, and Ghana, using five mitochondrial fragments, including D-loop and cytochrome b (CYTB). D-loop haplotype diversity ranged from 0.571 (± 0.149) in Republic of Benin to 0.921 (± 0.013) in Ghana. Within Nigeria, the haplotype diversity ranged from 0.659 (± 0.059) in Cross River to 0.837 (± 0.075) in Ondo subpopulation. The fixation index (FST), haplotype frequency distribution and analysis of molecular variance revealed varying levels of population structures across populations. No significant signature of population contraction was detected in the grasscutter populations. Evolutionary analyses of CYTB suggests that South African population might have diverged from other populations about 6.1 (2.6–10.18, 95% CI) MYA. Taken together, this study reveals the population status and evolutionary history of grasscutter populations in the region