Logic in the Sea
Reasoning can be a human characteristic that is overlooked by the fact that some of it is instinctual and some of it is learned, however, we do not always recognize those situations. Now, the thought of reasoning in animals brings about more questions, but animal psychologists through the years have performed studied on animals to tap into their intelligence and attempt to understand if and/or how they reason with their actions. Below are a few examples of how a seal and a dolphin are able to solve a problem proposed to them in an efficient manner with little prior prompting.
If you were told to listen to the sound of a fire alarm but were told to choose a picture that matches the sound, would you choose a picture of a big red truck or a bell?
The correct answer would be the bell because of the noise making relationship.
Now, what if I told you a seal lion is able to complete a similar test and get it correct on her first try?
This video above teaches you that not only can Rio reason between numbers, letters, and even associations with sounds, but she is able to use her prior knowledge of sound/letter combination to choose a relative answer. (She was given the sound for the letter "B" but was shown "C" and "9", she chose "C" due "B" and "C" both being letters.) As mentioned in the clip, this high level of reasoning was once thought to only be capable by humans.
Focus on minutes 23:00 to 24:45, the link is a shortcut to the exact starting time.
Although there were fish rewards involved and the tests were different, both the seal and the dolphin were able to make a connection between the learning abilities of humans and non-human animals. A downside is this is just one example from each species so it cannot be certain that all seals and all dolphins would be able to have such success in the trials. However, between these two marine mammals, researchers have successfully noted that non-human animals have the ability of complex thought and reasoning. These are just a few examples in a captivity situations, imagine all they are capable of in the wild when space is not limited, the environment is more social, and survival instincts are always in full force.
NOVA scienceNOW: Smart Marine Mammals | Smart Sea Lions. (n.d.). Retrieved October 01, 2017,
from https://wimedialab.pbslearningmedia.org/resource/nsn09.sci.life.reg.sealion/smart-sea-
lions/#.WdFN2tOGPBI
NOVA scienceNOW. (2011, February 09). How Smart Are Dolphins? Retrieved October 01, 2017, from
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/nature/how-smart-dolphins.html
If you were told to listen to the sound of a fire alarm but were told to choose a picture that matches the sound, would you choose a picture of a big red truck or a bell?
The correct answer would be the bell because of the noise making relationship.
Now, what if I told you a seal lion is able to complete a similar test and get it correct on her first try?
Rio, the Real Seal
Earlier in the semester, animal psychology class was introduced to Rio the Sea Lion in a study involving grouping of letters and numbers separately, but her intelligence goes beyond understanding the difference between letters and numbers. Rio took her understanding of letter and number to the next step by associating sounds with specific letters. This in itself was another huge learning step and benchmark for the researchers involved in her studies, but they did not want to stop there.This video above teaches you that not only can Rio reason between numbers, letters, and even associations with sounds, but she is able to use her prior knowledge of sound/letter combination to choose a relative answer. (She was given the sound for the letter "B" but was shown "C" and "9", she chose "C" due "B" and "C" both being letters.) As mentioned in the clip, this high level of reasoning was once thought to only be capable by humans.
Heavy Lifters or Smarter Thinkers?
Another marine, fish loving, animal that has been studied in reasoning are dolphins. Dolphins are well known for their intelligence and in the video below, they demonstrate exactly why. A contrapsion was placed with a fish closed inside of it and the only way to receive the fish was by opening the door on trap. Without a remote click, string to pull, handle to turn, or button to push, how would the dolphin successfully open the door and receive the fish reward?Focus on minutes 23:00 to 24:45, the link is a shortcut to the exact starting time.
The ability to understand that carrying more weight at once will release the reward is just one example of the dolphin's intelligence, more specifically, reasoning. Even using one weight at a time would have been a demonstration of reasoning, but the fact that the dolphin was able to connect and increase in number of weights, less time it took for the door to open, and quicker reward all together is incredible.
Although there were fish rewards involved and the tests were different, both the seal and the dolphin were able to make a connection between the learning abilities of humans and non-human animals. A downside is this is just one example from each species so it cannot be certain that all seals and all dolphins would be able to have such success in the trials. However, between these two marine mammals, researchers have successfully noted that non-human animals have the ability of complex thought and reasoning. These are just a few examples in a captivity situations, imagine all they are capable of in the wild when space is not limited, the environment is more social, and survival instincts are always in full force.
References
from https://wimedialab.pbslearningmedia.org/resource/nsn09.sci.life.reg.sealion/smart-sea-
lions/#.WdFN2tOGPBI
NOVA scienceNOW. (2011, February 09). How Smart Are Dolphins? Retrieved October 01, 2017, from
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/nature/how-smart-dolphins.html
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