写真提供： Ginger Me
恥ずかしさは観察が難しい。定義上、それは隠そうとする感情だ。しかし、世界的に有名な霊長類学者のジェーン・グドールは、チンパンジーにおいて、恥ずかしさと言える感情を観察したと考えている。
フィフィは、ジェーンが40年以上前から知っているメスのチンパンジーでした。フィフィの長男フロイトが5歳半の頃、彼の叔父でフィフィの弟であるフィガンは、チンパンジーの群れのアルファオスでした。フロイトはいつも、まるで大きなオスを崇拝するかのように、フィガンの後をついていました。
ある時、フィフィがフィーガンの毛づくろいをしていた時、フロイトは野生のオオバコの細い茎に登りました。葉の茂った枝にたどり着くと、彼は激しく前後に揺れ始めました。もし彼が人間の子供だったら、私たちは彼が見せびらかしていると言ったでしょう。突然、茎が折れ、フロイトは長い草むらの中に転げ落ちました。彼は怪我をしませんでした。ジェーンの近くに着地し、草むらから頭が出てきた時、ジェーンは彼がフィーガンの方を見ているのを見ました。彼は気づいたのでしょうか？もし気づいていたとしても、彼は気に留めず、毛づくろいを続けました。フロイトはとても静かに別の木に登り、餌を食べ始めました。
ハーバード大学の心理学者マーク・ハウザーは、オスのアカゲザルが羞恥心とも呼べる行動を観察しました。メスと交尾した後、オスは威勢よく歩き去りましたが、誤って溝に落ちてしまいました。オスは立ち上がり、慌てて周囲を見回しました。他のサルが自分の転落に気づいていないことに気づくと、何もなかったかのように、背筋を伸ばし、頭と尻尾を上げて歩き去りました。
動物救助：困っている動物たちへの思いやり
動物たちが同種族や人間を含む他の種族の仲間を救助する物語は数多くあります。それらは、様々な種の個体が困っている人々に対してどのように思いやりと共感を示すかを示しています。
オーストラリアのトーキーで、母カンガルーが車に轢かれた後、一頭の犬が母カンガルーの袋の中にいた赤ちゃんカンガルーを発見し、飼い主のもとへ連れて行きました。飼い主はカンガルーの世話をしました。10歳の犬と生後4ヶ月のカンガルーは、やがて親友になりました。
写真提供： Flickker Photos
ニュージーランドのビーチで、砂州の裏で座礁した2頭のコマッコウクジラをイルカが助け出しました。人々がクジラを深いところへ連れ戻そうと試みましたが、イルカは姿を現し、2頭はイルカの後を追って海へと戻っていきました。
犬は困っている人を助けることでも知られています。フロリダ州ポートシャーロットでは、息子と一緒に遊び場から出てきた女性を襲おうとした迷いのピットブルの雑種犬が阻止しました。動物管理官は、犬が見知らぬ女性を守ろうとしていたのは明らかだと述べました。また、アルゼンチンのブエノスアイレス郊外では、捨てられていた赤ちゃんを自分の生まれたばかりの子犬たちのそばに安全に置き、救助した犬がいました。驚くべきことに、この犬は野原で布にくるまれた赤ちゃんを発見し、子犬たちのいる場所まで約45メートルも運んでいったのです。
レイヴンジャスティス？
生物学者でワタリガラスの専門家であるベルント・ハインリッヒは、著書『カラスの心』の中で、ワタリガラスは、自分の隠れ場所を荒らし続けている個体を、その場で捕まえると記憶していると指摘しています。ワタリガラスは、隠れ場所が荒らされているのを実際に見ていなかったとしても、侵入者への攻撃に加わることがあります。
これは道徳的だろうか？ハインリッヒはそう考えているようだ。彼はこの行動について、「それは道徳的なカラスが人間に正義を求める行為だった。なぜなら、集団の利益を守るために自らに犠牲を払う可能性があったからだ」と述べている。
その後の実験で、ハインリッヒは集団の利益が個々のカラスの行動を左右する可能性があることを確認しました。カラスをはじめとする多くの動物は、公平性と正義を重視する社会規範に従って生活しています。
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We who 'know' always knew the animal kindom were far more aware than the controlling factions wanted us to believe....we felt their suffering, we shared their love, we understood their unspoken language. God truly exists in all living things. Very nice article - thanks for sharing!
When I was 12 years old, my horse had a stroke and had to be put down. I looked out the window at his body, lifeless and lying in the corral. I watched as Socks, the matriarch of the barn cats, walked towards the body, followed by a single-file line of the other dozen-or-so kittens and cats. Watching from inside the house I thought, "Oh no, they're going to eat him." But I didn't interrupt. When the slow parade reached the body, the cats sat down about two feet away, in an arc, smelling and looking. After some time Socks stood up, turned around and walked back to the barn, followed in orderly procession by the others.
Even 30 years later I am touched by this memory.
This horse (Bourbon Jim was his name) had been a huge high-strung Thoroughbred, but he was gentle and considerate with the cats. Once when I came home from school I found three kittens on his back. I couldn't figure how they got up there. This kept happening until one day I saw: The little kittens, with their sharp little kitten claws, were climbing up his front legs and up over his sides to sit atop his back. Bourbon didn't even flinch.
[Hide Full Comment]Thank you for dispelling the myth we have all been told. Everything we do influences every living being. It is time we all kept ourselves conscious of this. Thank you so much!
About the same time we adopted the silver-grey kitten, Griffin, we also adopted a white rabbit, Angel. They were kit and kitten together and played all summer in the back yard. Angel was a house-rabbit. In the fall, I bunny-proofed my office for him, and put a baby-gate at the door, so he couldn't get to the rest of the house. Since I don't like the cold, Angel didn't get to go out much, but Griffin continued to play with him inside.
In the early spring, Griffin once showed up at the back door with a huge pile of leaves in his mouth, bigger than his head. He zipped right by me and took off down the hall toward my office. Griffin jumped over the gate and ran to the bunny. I was freaking out, thinking he had a mouse in his mouth along with all those leaves. But no, he just dumped the leaves on the floor in front of Angel. No mouse, thankfully. Then Griffin waited for Angel to react. I think the bunny was as confused as me. So Griffin rolled in the leaves, with his belly in the air. I could almost hear him saying: "Since you couldn’t come outside with me, I brought spring in to you." And Angel jumped in the leaves with him.
[Hide Full Comment]How lovely. Animals are the best of teachers. They live lovingly and ask so little in return. Surely there are animals in heaven. Would it be heaven if there were no animals? Perhaps all beings who are loved, animal and human with join after this life on planet earth is complete for for a magnificent heavenly reunion, and we will continue our work and play in the presence of the great I AM.
Yes Animals are intelligent and have emotional lives but that does not mean I have to love all dogs or all other animals. Some of them are simply unlovable, just like some humans. The pitbulls who killed the six year old boy coming back from school in switzerland were certainly not lovable.
It is only the arrogant among us who claim a special status for our own, based on such superficial considerations as ethnicity, culture, color of skin, gender or having a human body.
The compassionate have always known that we are all children of the same source. We are unique and different in many ways but that does not make us superior than others.
We need no scientific research to tell us this fundamental truth.
AN EXCELLENT AND VERY KNOWLEDGABLE ARTICLE WHICH HAS INDEED CHANGED THE WAY OF THINKING ABOUT ANIMALS
EDWARD
DELHI (INDIA)
I always said animals are way better then humans! Loyality, unconditional love and they never intentionally break our hearts. God sent them here so would we know good.
where are the citations/references for the scientific research?
Yes, I agree with the comment of Womanswork below: as someone who spends the majority of their time with eight companion animals, including a parrot, I can attest to the fact that they exhibit feelings of joy, sadness, insecurity, jealousy and envy, among a range of other emotions. And the best thing is, they don't hide these feelings; they're writ large for all to see, if in fact one is willing to see...it's so much better than the emotional dissembling of humans.
Oh my, if only animals could use "words" and tell us more ......perhaps then we would listen....we dont seem to hear their needs at all by their body language etc....How "dumb" are we humans really, when we dont treat our fellow creatures with more respect , love and appreciation,
I have watched my grandsons dalmation watch my grandsons shadow to see "where" he is going to throw the ball that he is hiding behind his back....I tested him 3 times couldnt believe his intelligence , how pathetic of me!!!!!!
How DO we get people to understand this about animals? I do not know. thank you for sharing all this wonderful information.....
Finally, Science is catching up to what I and many others have known forever! To think animals don't feel or think is the height of elitism
When I take my morning walks and observe nature I often think we are at the bottom of the chain. I am in awe of trees. The are so present they no longer need to move. They feed themselves from above and below and in the fall the leaves they shed create more nutrients for themselves and others.