Vervet monkeys call out when they see a member of an enemy species, with different calls for different predators, so that their friends know what to do--for a leopard, get as high up a tree as you can; for an eagle, dive for cover. It is an instinctive response, however, not something the monkey learns to do, a language that can be changed from generation to generation.
Chimpanzees, on the other hand, our very close relatives, apparently think about it before making an alarm call--think about what it is they've seen and who needs to know, according to this report in the Guardian of a field experiment conducted in the Budongo forest, Uganda.
The experiment involved leaving a toy snake in the animals' path, and filming their reactions. The apes would jump back in alarm, come back to check it out, and only then deliver the warning call--mostly to chimps they knew had not seen the snake for themselves.
The suggestion is that chimps make use of what used to be called a "theory of mind"; that is, they are aware that the other chimps are thinking, and imagine what's on their minds, a skill once thought very exclusively human--they are empathic. Stories like this always make me inordinately happy, without my understanding exactly why.
Chimpanzees, on the other hand, our very close relatives, apparently think about it before making an alarm call--think about what it is they've seen and who needs to know, according to this report in the Guardian of a field experiment conducted in the Budongo forest, Uganda.
The experiment involved leaving a toy snake in the animals' path, and filming their reactions. The apes would jump back in alarm, come back to check it out, and only then deliver the warning call--mostly to chimps they knew had not seen the snake for themselves.
The suggestion is that chimps make use of what used to be called a "theory of mind"; that is, they are aware that the other chimps are thinking, and imagine what's on their minds, a skill once thought very exclusively human--they are empathic. Stories like this always make me inordinately happy, without my understanding exactly why.
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