Do any other animals have a sense of humour? If you slipped on a banana skin, are there any creatures that would laugh?
听
Advertisement
Jonathan Wallace Newcastle upon Tyne, UK
I believe that some of the great apes have demonstrated what appears to be a sense of humour. When shown conjuring tricks in zoos, they have been recorded displaying signs of astonishment followed by mirth at the seemingly impossible event they have witnessed. However, I don鈥檛 know if any animals would laugh at someone slipping on a banana skin in the same way humans often do.
听
Paul Clark London, UK
Having shared my home and life with an exceptionally intelligent cockatoo called Vanya for the past 12 years, I quickly learned that he seems to have the language skills of a 3-year-old human child.
Most remarkable, though, is his ability to 鈥渓augh鈥� at a joke before humans in the room get it. I assume he reads facial and vocal cues 鈥� such as the smiles and intonations of those around him 鈥� to judge when his human company is heading towards communal laughter. He also mimics human laughter with accuracy.
So, you might say, how does that suggest he has a sense of humour, assuming he can鈥檛 actually understand the nuances of the joke itself? Consider those awkward times when you have been in a group and didn鈥檛 quite get a joke someone told. What did you do? Laugh. The ability to comprehend what a joke is and how we are expected to react is as important as getting the punchline itself.
听
John Davies Lancaster, UK
Crows that tease cats often seem to enjoy it. The internet is full of videos in which one crow attracts a cat鈥檚 attention while a fellow corvid creeps up behind the cat to tweak it by the tail.
Magpies will hunt and kill juvenile starlings, and in some cases, they have been found to just decapitate the prey and leave the bodies. This may indicate that they possess a dark sense of humour.
听
Nina Dougall Malmsbury, Victoria, Australia
I think horses definitely do. I have been involved with both ponies and horses throughout my life, and have found, often to my embarrassment, that they enjoy setting up practical jokes.
Their favourite pranks are spilling slobber down the back of my neck and stomping in puddles while I lead them. Seemingly deliberate farts in my face, while intended as an insult, also result in mirth. These situations appear to be set up by the horse on purpose. The resultant wheezing asthmatic-cough-type noise they emit sounds a lot like laughter. Incidentally, they hate being laughed at.
听
To answer this question 鈥� or ask a new one 鈥� email lastword@newscientist.com.
Questions should be scientific enquiries about everyday phenomena, and both questions and answers should be concise. We reserve the right to edit items for clarity and style. Please include a postal address, daytime telephone number and email address.
91色情片 retains total editorial control over the published content and reserves all rights to reuse question and answer material that has been submitted by readers in any medium or in any format.