Cooperating Dolphins of Laguna: The Signaling Aprentice

In Laguna, Brazil, bottlenose dolphins herd fish towards a line of fishermen, signal to them when to throw the net, and then dive to get some of the fish.

In this clip, taken on Oct. 30, 2006, a dolphin child(?) appears to be learning the art of signaling. The local fishermen say that it takes years for a dolphin to become proficient at this, raising the possibility that this amazing skill is acquired by trial and error and not--as humans cannot help but think--through a theory of mind.

Category:

Pets & Animals

Tags:

• Dolphin
• Laguna
• Brazil
• fishing
• cooperation
• signal
• theory
• of
• mind
• amimal
• behavior
• cognition