Are animals moral beings? Do they know the difference between good and evil? All of us, as children, were taught rules on how to behave, to develop our own moral code. But are humans the only species to know a personal sense of morality? To answer these and other questions is, in an interview, Dr. Marc Bekoff, collaborator of the HuffingtonPost, evolutionary biologist and ethologist
He is about to end up run over, his mother saves him
Are animals moral beings? Do they know the difference between good and evil? All of us, as children, were taught rules on how to behave, to develop our own moral code. But are humans the only species to know a personal sense of morality? To answer these and other questions is, in an interview, Dr. Marc Bekoff, HuffingtonPost collaborator, evolutionary biologist and ethologist.
There is, then, something that can be defined as "animal morality“? “I think animals recognize good and evil. There is much evidence of this in the ability to take care of others, like an animal caring for a wounded member of its group, instead of attacking, leaving him alone or stealing his food. So yes, I think there are some good examples of what is right and what is wrong and what I would call a moral behavior“, Replies Bekoff.
Many studies on canids, such as wolves, dogs and coyotes, explain the importance of game as learning. But what happens with the other animals? Do they play? And do they follow special rules? "The game - replies the biologist - has been studied in animals such as birds, and there is some evidence that shows how even the fish play. But, in fact, most of the research has been done on mammals. Apparently, research done on play in rats has shown, for example, that their way of playing is as complex as that of dogs, wolves, coyotes and chimpanzees “.
Ma not all animals respect the rules of the game and there are some who act "immorally". "I saw it in parks with dogs, - says Bekoff - but one of the things we learned also in nature, among wild coyotes, but animals are not labeled as cheaters or disloyal players. What happens is that others then reject their play signals or avoid them. These individuals have no ties to other members and are more likely to leave the group. It follows a death rate up to four times higher. So, as a biologist, what I'm really looking for ultimately is whether there is any consequence of not playing fair. Well, it seems that the consequence may be that of leave the group and be more likely to die".
This therefore explains why bullying cannot bring any benefit to wild animals. But what about moral behavior? Does it have an evolutionary advantage? “What we basically find in all primates is that over 90% of their behavior is what we call pro-social or affiliative, positive. 10%, or even less, is what we would call aggressive or assertive. But the important thing is that over that 10% the percentage can become truly harmful. So what excites me is that research on animal moral and pro-social behavior is showing that being nice and kind to others is natural behavior for animals“, Concludes the expert.
In short, most animal behaviors are cooperative, despite the fact that documentaries want us to believe in a competitive nature. So, if we humans are animals too, perhaps in our DNA, after hundreds of millions of years of evolution, there is an indelible moral compass that could make us better and more respectful beings. Better to continue to behave "like animals", our probability of survival is at stake.
Roberta Ragni
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