"Stop acting like an animal."
Whether it's directed at an unruly child or a belligerent drunk, the warning is typically reserved for people who are acting uncivilized or out of control.
But we wonder if the age-old saying is more insulting to animals than to the people it's directed at.
- More than 100 baboons at a zoo in the Netherlands recently baffled their caretakers when they became withdrawn, huddling together and refusing food. It's unlikely they were scared of a predator, as the zoo is in the middle of a city, and the baboons' enclosure is surrounded by lemurs, elephants and kangaroos. None of those animals shared the baboons' obvious distress.
A zoo biologist said the baboons experienced similar periods of angst in 1994, 1997 and 2007. One theory is the dominant males became frightened, and the rest of the group emulated that behavior. But if that was the case, what scared the alpha males to begin with?
- New research shows dogs may be even more in-tune with us than we thought. A University of Tokyo study found dogs often emulate their owners' yawns - and it appears they can even tell when a human is faking it. Researchers determined the reciprocal yawning appeared to be rooted in empathy, rather than distress.
- Perhaps the most interesting animal research as of late involves dolphins. One study found dolphins can remember the distinctive whistles of other individual dolphins whom they haven't seen or heard in years. One dolphin recognized and reacted to a recording of the whistle of its former tankmate - 20 1/2 years after the two had last seen each other. The acute social and auditory memory likely helps dolphins stay safe, avoiding others who have mistreated or dominated them in the past.
Another recent study found dolphins, when one of their senses is blocked, problem-solve by using their other senses to compensate and mimic the movements of their human trainers.
The more we read about research like this - which shows animals are more intelligent and social than we thought - the more we're reminded of our own place in the animal kingdom. We clearly have a lot more to learn about the capabilities and feelings of our furry, scaled and feathered friends.
So, the next time someone says, "You're acting like an animal," the best response may very well be, "Thank you."
