Piece of straw
Deceit
A friend alerted me to an article in the Times about deceit in the Animal kingdom.
Here are my favorite paragraphs:
‘In a comparative survey of primate behavior, Richard Byrne and Nadia Corp of the University of St. Andrews in Scotland found a direct relationship between sneakiness and brain size. The larger the average volume of a primate species’ neocortex — the newest, “highest” region of the brain — the greater the chance that the monkey or ape would pull a stunt like this one described in The New Scientist: a young baboon being chased by an enraged mother intent on punishment suddenly stopped in midpursuit, stood up and began scanning the horizon intently, an act that conveniently distracted the entire baboon troop into preparing for nonexistent intruders.’
And:
‘Great apes, for example, make great fakers. Frans B. M. de Waal, a professor at the Yerkes National Primate Research Center and Emory University, said chimpanzees or orangutans in captivity sometimes tried to lure human strangers over to their enclosure by holding out a piece of straw while putting on their friendliest face.
“People think, Oh, he likes me, and they approach,” Dr. de Waal said. “And before you know it, the ape has grabbed their ankle and is closing in for the bite. It’s a very dangerous situation.”
Apes wouldn’t try this on their own kind. “They know each other too well to get away with it,” Dr. de Waal said. “Holding out a straw with a sweet face is such a cheap trick, only a naïve human would fall for it.”’
Slapstick
Amazing characteristics and lovely article.Apes have this slapstick ability in them, you’d wish they were able to talk sometimes.
I think it is some kind of a relief to find out, even apes seem to fake. That faking and deceit (or even ‘ being sneaky’) are not just tricky inventions of the human mind. However, since our own DNA structure is almost the same, nobody must be surprised, I figure.
The straw trick should be put on film though; that’s classic slapstick
to all faking primates we are
My sincerest wishes.@ Arnon, David, Neria, ...
Happy Chanukah
@ Others
Merry Christmas
@ All
Happy Newyear
...
Even my cat can do tricks: he stares trough the window until I look too, and then he snatches my meatball…To Arnon and to all present on this remarkable site, I wish you all cozy days of feasting: Merry Christmas, Happy Chanuka and Happy New-year!
(And remember: sister euphoria and cousin melancholia will always stand by your side.)
Arnon
maybe it wasn't really supposed to be, but i found your column on Horst Tappert very funny.Faking
I did this test on my mother yesterday (the whole family was out for dinner). We were walking in the streets and at a random moment when my mother was talking, I stopped walking like I was being perplexed by something. Everybody stopped as well and looked my way. This 'feeling of danger' is still in us.It's a great way to stop focussing on the (boring) subject of matter and move on to something more fun. I tend on using it frequently, but then again I said to myself to stand up and shout "Bravo" at the next theatershow, but i didn't the other day. Someone else did. I was pleased by that. "Bravo" is a beautiful word.
@Bernard:
If your cat does that, she must perceive you as someone of her own kind. For she expects you to mimic her moves and then strikes for the meat. That's peculiar, isn't it!
Luring
I'd like some hints for luring though. I'm a bad bad lurer. I can not lure anyone into anything.Mieke, All
Merry Christmas!Dries
Horst Tappert was a funny man in his own way.To all
Merry Christmas and a happy 2009!Bernard, let's hope for some better architecture in 2009 ;-).
Arnon, nice word in the article: "schadenfreude", better than the "ziektewinst" I come accross sometimes.
Sure! Best to you too! Thanks.
Jeanette
"Schadenfreude" would be in Dutch "leedvermaak.""Ziektewinst" has a completely different meaning.
frankly
I don't understand the pre-occupation, if not obsession, with behaviour of apes and the likes. Especially the one closing in for a bite in an ankle might suggest that they suffer from original sin too.In any case I find the behaviour of humans so much more hilarious, stupid, mind-boggling etc. etc. And so much easier at hand.
The day when chimpansees a.o. start to talk to you will have my attention.
Bernard f
Have you considered tricking your cat?Joanne
Is it wrong not to be "speciocentric" and showing some interest in other kinds of animals? I admit I used to think that we humans were the only smart and interesting ones and that animals (now I don't say OTHER animals) were just stupid organisms which share our surface by coincidence, uninteresting bunches of meat whoms behaviour is dominated only by primary survival needs (in the end, our conduct also is). But the more you watch them and ignore all the bullshit (mainly bullshit, I guess there will be some capacitie I've never noticed in myself that turned is into the dominant species, but it won't be as special as they paint it) about unique human capacities they teach us, the more interesting and surprising they result. Don't prive yourself from that, open your mind and focus your attention on it. Here is a link to a nice video which shows a wonderfull architectonical prestation achieved by ants. Enjoy it.http://es.youtube.com/watch?v=xQERRbU23bU&fmt=18
Tricking a cat…?! Really… My goodness, by Jove. Jesus…
Bernard
I could trick mine.Mieke
What sort of tricks did you play on your cat?Oscar
Sometimes I had her chasing me, sometimes I chased her, always in a playful way. I once chased her relentlessly untill she was completely bewildered. She loved it.I cannot call this tricking, it is playing.
Tricking is like luring your cat with food to come inside the home, when he or she does not want to. They easily see right through you.
Bernard
How do you think I was able to catch her? I lured her into the closet and then I symbolicly gave her a neckbite.Mieke
A long time ago, I witnessed the following event.In the middle of the winter, a friend of mine noticed his cat standing outside in the garden at a large glass door, waiting to be let into the house.
My friend walked up to the glass door, put his hands in his pockets, and projected his gaze to the far back of the garden, staring into the distance. He pretended not to notice the cat.
At this point, his cat started to show concern that she might go unnoticed. She got up on her hind legs and put her paws on the glass door, her eyes wide open and fixated on my friend.
When her behavior did not seem to succeed in attracting my friend's attention, the cat started to look at him in despair while frantically waving her paws across the surface of the glass door.
