We wonder so much about green alien life that we forget to look in the nooks and corners of our homes, the street, the ocean and the sky for unbelievable smartness. Think we are the only ones who can speak, cry, laugh and lie; the only kleptomaniacs, the only dancers and the only artists? Read about our friends from the animal kingdom and think again!
Ants
Smarty-pants or smarty-ants, you decide. These tiny, unwelcomed guests are probably the most successful species to ever have existed, evolving through millions of years, while half the the things alive got extinct. Ants are known to build whole cities (yes, ant hills are technically ant cities), with a complex ventilation system, intricate sewage systems and special farming chambers. Yes, ants are the only living creatures except humans who farm. They farm fungi like mushrooms, and err… other insects (just like humans farm cattle!). Ants also have a very teacher-ly attitude when it comes to teaching the novices about foraging. The teacher ant isn’t strict, either. It patiently waits until the student ant has caught up. Ants have a hierarchy, too. And wars, battles and combats! The winning side even captures ant slaves! We’re scared, aren’t you?
Chimpanzees
Apes are our closest living relatives, so it’s no surprise that they’re smart like us. Any movie that showed you signing chimpanzees wasn’t lying. Chimpanzees can use sign language and exhibit a strong memory for these gestures. While communicating with fellows far away, they use louder voices, making sure to be quieter while talking to nearby friends. These communications tactics involve screaming, grunting, laughing and smiling, and many other gestures that are emoji worthy! Chimpanzees can also use tools for their benefit, like a stone to crack a nut or a stick to make sure the python’s really dead. Being so intelligent and responsive, all scientists admit that these forefathers of ours are undoubtedly intelligent.
Elephants
Elephants possess the largest brains on land. While that might not say much, hear us out. A research at the University of Sussex found out that an African elephant could distinguish people’s age, sex and ethnicity just by the sound of their voice! Elephants have self-awareness, something not many animals can claim to have: they know who they are, where they are and what they look like. Do you remember seeing a video of an elephant painting? Yes, elephants can use tools, and with perfection. They use sticks to scratch their itch and even dig holes for water. When you consider the fact that they have trunks instead of lips and a huge larynx, it is but a magic trick that they can mimic human sounds! And they have insanely good memories. They remember their friends and caretakers from years ago and are unbelievably happy to reunite! These beautiful mammals can empathize, mourning the loss of their dead – elephants caress the bones of their deceased friends with their trunks and stand by the body for hours. Petition to legalise elephants as domestic pets?
Pigeons
Pigeons aren’t named the smartest living birds for nothing! Imagine being a bird and also being able to recognise all the 26 letters of the English alphabet. Now imagine being able to recognise (and learn!) numbers, too. That’s not all! Pigeons can see all the colours that we can, and many, many more. They have a superhuman vision and can see the ultra violet. And they have a photographic memory. If you remember, pigeons were used in the world wars to locate various people who were lost at sea. This search-and-rescue mission was possible because of their daringly powerful eyesight. These birds also possess self-awareness and their homing instinct is out of question! Pigeons suddenly don’t seem like pests anymore, right?
Octopi
Oh, where do we start? The octopus’s brain-to-body ratio is the largest of any invertebrates (no spine glide-y animals). Their “hands” have brains of their own! Octopi are incredibly fun (and wicked), so don’t freak out when you see them playing catch in a tank. They can open jar lids from the inside and outside, while some of us still struggle and end up banging the jar on the kitchen counter. They are exceptional problem solvers, (maybe this is why they can undo the plumbing of their tanks and go back home to the ocean?), can conceptualise (and on occasion, understand the trick of electricity and scare people by turning off the lights), build defensive stone structures around themselves and make tools out of coconuts and shells. When octupi are frightened, they can mimic other scarier sea animals, and also flex to look like them! They’re fun, though. There has been an instance of octopi stealing a video camera (wit alert) and accidentally recording themselves (cuteness alert).
Do you know any smart animals? Pets allowed! Let us know below.
If you liked this article, also check out: Strange Animals: Newly Discovered Marine Blob Looks Like A Party Balloon
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