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This is the larger lesson of animal cognition research: It humbles us.

We are not alone in our ability to invent or plan or to contemplate ourselves—or even to plot and lie.

Many scientists believed animals were incapable of any thought. They were simply machines, robots programmed to react to stimuli but lacking the ability to think or feel.

We’re glimpsing intelligence throughout the animal kingdom.


Copyright Vincent J. Musi, National Geographic


A dog with a vocabulary of 340 words. A parrot that answers “shape” if asked what is different, and “color” if asked what is the same, while being showed two items of different shape and same color. An octopus with “distinct personality” that amuses itself by shooting water at plastic-bottle targets (the first reported invertebrate play behavior). Lemurs with calculatory abilities. Sheep able to recognize faces (of other sheep and humans) long term and that can discern moods. Crows able to make and use tools (in tests, even out of materials never seen before). Human-dolphin communication via an invented sign language (with simple grammar). Dolphins ability to correctly interpret on the first occasion instructions given by a person displayed on a TV screen.

This may only be the tip of the iceberg…

Read the article Animal Minds in National Geographic`s March 2008 edition.

Ever think about vegetarianism?

animal cognition, animal intelligence, cognition, intelligence, nationa geographic

This entry was posted on Saturday, May 17th, 2008 at 4:36 pm and is filed under This'n'that, science feature. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.