Can animals count?

CrowdScience

BBC

Science, Technology

4.8 • 985 Ratings

🗓️ 10 September 2022

⏱️ 32 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Mathematics and our ability to describe the world in terms of number, shape and measurement may feel like a uniquely human ability. But is it really? Listener Mamadu from Sierra Leone wants to know: can animals count too? CrowdScience presenter Marnie Chesterton goes on a hunt to uncover the numerical abilities of the animal kingdom. Can wild lions compare different numbers? Can you teach bees to recognise and choose specific amounts? And if the answer is yes, how do they do it? Marnie tries to find out just how deep the numerical rabbit hole goes… and comes across a parrot named Alex who is perhaps the most impressive example of animal counting of them all.

Contributors: Brian Butterworth - emeritus professor of cognitive neuropsychology at University College London Mai Morimoto - researcher at Queen Mary University of London Lars Chittka - professor of sensory and behavioural ecology at Queen Mary University of London Irene Pepperberg - comparative psychologist, and research associate at Harvard University

Sounds: Lions from Karen McComb, emeritus professor at University of Sussex Túngara frogs from Michael Ryan, professor of zoology at University of Texa at Austin

Presenter: Marnie Chesterton Producer: Florian Bohr

Transcript

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0:00.0	Take some time for yourself with soothing classical music from the mindful mix, the Science of
0:07.0	Happiness Podcast.
0:08.0	For the last 20 years I've dedicated my career to exploring the science of living a happier more meaningful life and I want
0:14.4	to share that science with you.
0:16.1	And just one thing, deep calm with Michael Mosley.
0:19.4	I want to help you tap in to your hidden relaxation response system and open the door to that
0:25.4	calmer place within. Listen on BBC Sounds. This is crowd science from the BBC World Service. I'm Marnie Chesterton and today we start in the grasslands of
0:44.9	Tanzania in the Serengeti to observe lions. Technically I'm here in a
0:50.4	BBC studio much safer but in my mind I'm totally there and it's all
0:55.6	because of how lions behave when another group of lions approach.
1:00.1	The lions are territorial, they live in prides, and they try and defend their territory and their
1:08.1	pride from intruders.
1:12.1	And if they hear intruders at dusk, that's when the intruders usually come coming
1:17.2	through the bush so they can't see them but they can hear them. With me is Brian Butterworth,
1:24.3	emeritus professor of cognitive neuropsychology at University College London.
1:29.0	He's explaining that these big cats are facing some twilight dilemmas.
1:34.0	So they might hear three intruding lions,
1:38.0	and they recognize their voices as not being from their own pride.
1:41.0	What will they do?
1:42.6	Now, if lions fight, it can be very dangerous, even fatal.
1:46.6	So they have to be very careful what they do.
1:50.3	How do our lions make the right calculation? Is that the correct word?
	...

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