Waar komt het "aandacht-miauwen" van katten vandaan?

Het is aangeleerd gedrag, waarschijnlij kmeegenomen uit de jeugd van het beestje: Op het moment dat een kitten aandacht van de moeder zoekt (bv omdat het kitten de moeder niet kan vinden) dan reageert de moeder daarop. Echter, als de dieren ouder worden, gebruiken ze het niet meer. Tot ze bij ons komen, en wij hun normale signalen niet begrijpen. Om even de engelse wikipedia te quoten:

A meow is a sound used by cats to signal a request to their mother or owner. Adult cats do not normally meow to each other, and so the meowing to human beings that domesticated cats exhibit is likely partly an extension of the use by kittens of this plaintive signal

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cat_communication#cite_note-2

Hun bron:

The cat’s meow is her way of communicating with people. Cats meow for many reasons—to say hello, to ask for things, and to tell us when something’s wrong. Meowing is an interesting vocalization in that adult cats don’t actually meow at each other, just at people. Kittens meow to let their mother know they’re cold or hungry, but once they get a bit older, cats no longer meow to other cats. But they continue to meow to people throughout their lives, probably because meowing gets people to do what they want. Cats also yowl—a sound similar to the meow but more drawn out and melodic. Unlike meowing, adult cats do yowl at one another, specifically during breeding season.

http://www.aspcabehavior.org/articles/98/Meowing-and-Yowling.aspx