The oceans have always held fascination for mankind. More than merely seeing it as a rich source of food, people have been captivated by the mysterious depths, the crashing waves, the wind and the weather that make the seas nothing man can conquer. Those who sought to understand life on the salt water were the first scientists, making observations and drawing conclusions. The conclusions were often wrong, but that could be said of modern researchers today. Still, the idea that intelligent sea life exists is accepted by most who study the ocean.
Fisherman and sailors have always told stories of playful dolphins, monstrous sea serpents, the magnificent albatross, and other things landsmen never see. Strange things come up in nets or are caught on fishing lines. Tales found in myths and legend often really occur on the high seas. Sailors never doubted that the creatures under the water had a mind of their own.
There might not be personal malignancy, as in 'Moby Dick', but there are plenty of instances when dolphins learn to recognize friendly divers, for example. Some divers say that even barracudas respond to repeated offers of food. Seagulls quickly take up panhandling if people on the beach feed them; in fact, it sometimes doesn't seem quite safe to do so, the birds get so excited and come in such numbers.
Modern studies seem to validate the idea that sea creatures don't operate merely in established patterns of their species. Goldfish, once thought to have a memory lasting less than five seconds, can learn to operate feeding stations and even learn to come only at certain times of day. Moreover, they demonstrate the ability to remember learned skills for three months or more. They also learn to identify color-coded feeding devices, going only to those they have learned will dispense food.
Shows at aquariums have demonstrated to millions of visitors that Orca whales and dolphins readily learn to perform for rewards. It's obvious also that the animals play to the audience, often doing tricks when their handlers - and the buckets of fish - are not around.
Some of these animals seem to understand quite an astonishing number of words and to recognize certain people they are especially fond of. They often exhibit 'human' behavior; if a design is painted on a part of a dolphin's body that it cannot see, it will go to a mirror and examine itself, perhaps preening as if to show off the decoration.
Scientists classify some 'smart' behavior as instinct rather than reasoning. The study of instinctive behavior is fascinating, but many researchers are probing beyond things like migrations and survival instincts. They have documented examples of maternal love in whales and dolphins that seem to be as intense as that of humans. Those who believe in pure evolution may have a hard time with the many documented examples of what looks a lot like reason in sea creatures.
When octopus and other bottom dwellers camouflage themselves with shells or when seabirds drop hard mollusks from great heights to break them on the rocks, is that intelligence? Is there any reasoning behind symbiotic relationships? Do sea creatures use inanimate objects as tools? It often seems like ocean denizens are solving problems with reason.
Fisherman and sailors have always told stories of playful dolphins, monstrous sea serpents, the magnificent albatross, and other things landsmen never see. Strange things come up in nets or are caught on fishing lines. Tales found in myths and legend often really occur on the high seas. Sailors never doubted that the creatures under the water had a mind of their own.
There might not be personal malignancy, as in 'Moby Dick', but there are plenty of instances when dolphins learn to recognize friendly divers, for example. Some divers say that even barracudas respond to repeated offers of food. Seagulls quickly take up panhandling if people on the beach feed them; in fact, it sometimes doesn't seem quite safe to do so, the birds get so excited and come in such numbers.
Modern studies seem to validate the idea that sea creatures don't operate merely in established patterns of their species. Goldfish, once thought to have a memory lasting less than five seconds, can learn to operate feeding stations and even learn to come only at certain times of day. Moreover, they demonstrate the ability to remember learned skills for three months or more. They also learn to identify color-coded feeding devices, going only to those they have learned will dispense food.
Shows at aquariums have demonstrated to millions of visitors that Orca whales and dolphins readily learn to perform for rewards. It's obvious also that the animals play to the audience, often doing tricks when their handlers - and the buckets of fish - are not around.
Some of these animals seem to understand quite an astonishing number of words and to recognize certain people they are especially fond of. They often exhibit 'human' behavior; if a design is painted on a part of a dolphin's body that it cannot see, it will go to a mirror and examine itself, perhaps preening as if to show off the decoration.
Scientists classify some 'smart' behavior as instinct rather than reasoning. The study of instinctive behavior is fascinating, but many researchers are probing beyond things like migrations and survival instincts. They have documented examples of maternal love in whales and dolphins that seem to be as intense as that of humans. Those who believe in pure evolution may have a hard time with the many documented examples of what looks a lot like reason in sea creatures.
When octopus and other bottom dwellers camouflage themselves with shells or when seabirds drop hard mollusks from great heights to break them on the rocks, is that intelligence? Is there any reasoning behind symbiotic relationships? Do sea creatures use inanimate objects as tools? It often seems like ocean denizens are solving problems with reason.
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