This sneaky bird might prove animals can lie.
Drongos mimic alarm calls to scare meerkats from food, using more than 50 deceptive sounds.
OriginalSourceLive ScienceUnited StatesLeanCenterCredibilityPublished10:00 UTCRatings: AllSides, MBFCSourceLive ScienceUnited StatesLeanCenterCredibilityPublished10:00 UTCRatings: AllSides, MBFC
“Can animals lie? This sneaky bird might be proof.”
Can animals lie? A drongo uses deceptive calls to steal food.
Key points
- Biologist James O'Hanlon surveys animal deception in his book Liars, Cheats and Copycats.
- Some animal tricks are not conscious choices but adaptations from natural selection.
- Fork-tailed drongo imitates alarm calls to scare meerkats and steal food.
- Researchers documented over fifty deceptive vocalizations in the drongo's repertoire.
- Scientists remain hesitant to conclusively prove intentional deception in animals.
How it got here
Live Science publishes the article.
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The Brief ranks it 10th.
10 10 This sneaky bird might prove animals can lie.
Drongos mimic alarm calls to scare meerkats from food, using more than 50 deceptive sounds.