DailyDirt: Animals With Tools
from the urls-we-dig-up dept
The more we watch animals, the more we can see them show off their intelligence. A bunch of different animals have been observed making and using tools -- and sharing how to use them with their friends. Here are just a few examples of some animals using tools in fascinating (and maybe dangerous) ways.- A captive cockatoo has been seen creating a tool spontaneously and improving upon its design. This behavior has not been observed in the wild (yet?), and it hasn't been replicated by other captive cockatoos. Still, it shows there's tool-building potential in these birds. [url]
- Female chimps are usually the innovators in primate communities. The female chimps tend to leave their families when they mature... and the socializations and sharing create opportunities for starting new cultural trends -- like ant fishing with twigs or washing food before eating. [url]
- Unfortunately, a mobile chat app for bonobos didn't get funded on Kickstarter. But this could still be a really cool zoo exhibit to get people communicating with apes. [url]
- Forget sharks with lasers attached to their heads. The Ukrainian navy is training dolphins "to attack enemy combat swimmers using special knives or pistols fixed to their heads." Hmm. Arming dolphins doesn't seem necessary since they're already powerful enough to kill a person underwater... but maybe dolphins with guns will look more menacing to enemies. [url]
Thank you for reading this Techdirt post. With so many things competing for everyone’s attention these days, we really appreciate you giving us your time. We work hard every day to put quality content out there for our community.
Techdirt is one of the few remaining truly independent media outlets. We do not have a giant corporation behind us, and we rely heavily on our community to support us, in an age when advertisers are increasingly uninterested in sponsoring small, independent sites — especially a site like ours that is unwilling to pull punches in its reporting and analysis.
While other websites have resorted to paywalls, registration requirements, and increasingly annoying/intrusive advertising, we have always kept Techdirt open and available to anyone. But in order to continue doing so, we need your support. We offer a variety of ways for our readers to support us, from direct donations to special subscriptions and cool merchandise — and every little bit helps. Thank you.
–The Techdirt Team
Filed Under: animals, biology, bonobos, chimps, cockatoo, dolphins, intelligence, primates, smart animals, tools
Reader Comments
Subscribe: RSS
View by: Time | Thread
In other news...
[ link to this | view in thread ]
[ link to this | view in thread ]
Re: In other news...
[ link to this | view in thread ]
This is rumored to be why the US don't deploy armed dolphins in service for patrol in large scale, they apparently get bored and start striking the boats, rocks, other fish and instructors.
[ link to this | view in thread ]
[ link to this | view in thread ]
http://drmcninja.com/archives/comic/14p70/
[ link to this | view in thread ]
Bonobo
[ link to this | view in thread ]