Most of us remember playing games of ‘It’ or ‘Tag’ when we were children (or indeed a bit older!) and now researchers at Portsmouth University have spotted gorillas playing the same game.
They will hit their playmate and then run away – with others sometimes joining in and the roles reversing, just like our familiar game. Although we can’t be sure that they are playing tag in the way that we may understand it, there are certainly strong similarities.
Marina Davila Ross, one of the researchers who studied the gorillas, believes that playing tag gives the gorillas a chance to work out how best to relate to others in social situations. For example, if they just tapped another gorilla they might not run away at all; but if they hit a bit harder they would run away. This suggests that the gorillas were learning where the boundaries of acceptable behaviour were – an important skill when you have to get along with each other!
So just as with human children, it may be that games like this teach gorillas important social lessons for their adult life. Not to mention having fun.
Source:
Van Leeuwen, E., Zimmermann, E. and Davila Ross, M. (2010) Responding to inequities: gorillas try to maintain their competitive advantage during play fights, Biology Letters.
The signs are that dairy cows really enjoy being let out of their shed after a long confinement during winter weather. Our clip shows them enjoying their taste of freedom!
We have quoted broadcaster and farmer John Humphrys before but his remark is well worth repeating because this clip shows you exactly what he’s talking about:
“They tear about the field, kicking their legs into the air …For six months they have lived in sheds, slept in stalls, stood on concrete. Now, once again, they have the grass beneath their feet. They seem, quite literally, to be full of the joy of spring. It lifts the spirits to watch them.”
For our special Christmas day post, we found a rather lovely fact about Japanese Macaque monkeys….
Young Macaques have been seen to make and throw snowballs, just like people do! Scientists could find no reason why they would do this, other than simply because it is fun!
Not only that, but back in the 1960s, these Japanese Macaques saw their human counterparts bathing in hot springs, and must have decided that this was a great idea. In the freezing temperatures they endure, a hot tub seems to be a relaxing and enjoyable social occasion.
Just another little similarity between different species – it seems many like to have fun, whether we have fur, feathers or plain old human clothes…
Wishing you a Compassionate Christmas!
Sources:
Uhlenbrook, C. (2008) Animal life the definitive visual guide to animals and their behaviour, Dorling Kindersley, London. Primate Info Net (2009) [accessed 24 December 09)
BBC Worldwide, Monkeys Relaxing
Dogs are not just man’s best friend. Bella the dog is best friend of Tarra the elephant at the Tennessee Elephant Sanctuary and you can watch their amazing story here:
