Product Description

The study of animal intelligence has developed enormously over the last decade. Herons fish' using twigs as bait, monkeys add and subtract, dolphins hunt in groups to outwit prey, ravens solve complex puzzles. Steering clear of sentimental attempts to equate animals with humans, Stephen Budiansky shows us how superbly well-adapted animal intelligence' is for the survival of animals - large and small, wild and domestic - in the evolutionary contest. We can thus learn a true respect for their remarkable evolutionary heritage on Earth.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #931210 in Books
• Published on: 1999-10-07
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 256 pages

Amazon.co.uk Review
If a lion could talk, is a quote from the famous philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein and continues "we would not understand him" for the lion has its own language, thoughts and agenda, which suit it well enough. And this is the underlying message of American science writer Stephen Budiansky's fascinating book. Our relationship with other animals has probably always been deeply ambivalent since the days when we were both the hunter and the hunted. Domestication has further complicated the issue for us, no more so than in these days of embattled debate about animal rights.

According to Budiansky, our anthropomorphic "tendency to view an animal's actions in terms of our own conscious intentions, thoughts, and motives, is viewed by many as an act of generosity...and humility". The ultimate compliment to an animal seems to be "you're almost human" but as Budiansky points out a more honest evaluation would be that anthropomorphism "betrays an utter lack of imagination on our part". Indeed we seem to suffer from "compulsive anthropomorphism".

For many this may seem like "fighting talk" but Budiansky's approach is deeply empathic to the other animals and not unsympathetic to our human desire to somehow relate to the animals, even if it often deeply misguided. He takes an evolutionary approach to the problem of understanding animal intelligence and communication. Building on his previous bestsellers The Covenant of the Wild (shortlisted for the Rhone-Poulenc Science Prize in 1995) and the more recent The Nature of Horses, Budiansky manages to bring the wealth of research that is normally buried in the academic literature into the public domain. An index, notes and bibliography will help those who wish to follow up this intriguing subject.

Whatever your feelings about animals, as Budiansky says they are all "remarkable in their own right" and much like humans, have all "hit upon unique ways to make a living against all probability". And that truly is "something to respect, and to treasure". --Douglas Palmer

About the Author
Formerly Washington editor of the journal Nature, Stephen Budiansky is a senior writer at US News & World Report, where he writes about science, the environment and current affairs. He lives with his wife and two children on a small farm in Virginia.

Customer Reviews

Very enjoyable and accessable read.
Excellent book for anyone from animal lovers to those studying animal behaviour full-time. "If A Lion Could Talk" is a thought provoking book, allowing us to question our own ideas, opinions and views on the difficult task of asking "Are animals intelligent?". It is one of those books you can pick up and find something that interests you that turns on the naturally human enquiring mind! This book is written in an uncomplicated manner making the ideas within it accessable to all. Using anecdotes and a treasure trove of tales of scenarios possibly involving animal intelligence, it then puts a spin on the common misconceptions surrounding them. This book at all times impresses upon the feeling that animals should be respected for their diversity and abilities to adapt and learn, but serves to rationalise some of the examples of what to all of us seem extraordinary behaviour.

To be an animal ... or not?
To be fair I have read only half the book, but this has been more than enough. To begin with the title is misleading. It suggests that the book is about animal intelligence, when in fact it is the exact opposit. Basically the author tells us that all animals have evolved to their present state and only humans can be considered intelligent. So in his view although we may think other animals are intelligent (and even animal researchers may make this "mistake")this is just being foolish and anthropomorphic. Other animals are simply exhibiting conditioned responses, following subconscious cues which we give out, or reacting to inborn instincts of their own. He goes over and over this same point repeatedly.
I find this too simplistic and his point of view conveniently overlooks the fact that we humans are ourselves animals. So what is wrong by interpreting the behaviour of other animals, using our own behaviour as a guide? If a man looks sad, we will think he is feeling sad. If an animal looks sad, why should we not think that the animal feeling sad too? Why look for another explanation simply because we can't accept that in essence all animals are the same?
Finally then, if you believe(as I do) that animals are intelligent and have feelings and are worthy of study, then you are likely to find this book as boring and uninspiring as I did.

simply the best book on animal cognition I have ever read
I am usually very skeptical about science books written by journalists, but this certainly set my mind at rest. It is both informative and humourous. In particular Budiansky draws light on the human obssession with anthmorphism, showing it as a product of lack of imagination by our species. Both easier to read and more indepth than 'Wild Minds' and 'the singing gorilla'. My suggestion is simply to go and read this