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From: DawnWatch - news [at] dawnwatch.com
Date: Oct 31, 2006 2:25 PM
Subject: DawnWatch: Elephant mirror tests front page Wash Post and AJC, in NY Times and others — 10/31/06

The discovery that elephants understand how mirrors work, and the suggestion that the understanding proves self-awareness, has made big news today, Tuesday October 31. The story is in hundreds of papers across the world and even on the front page of some leading papers.

The Washington Post has the story, by Rick Weiss, on the front page, headed, “Who’s That Pretty Pachyderm?”

It opens:

“Elephants can recognize themselves in a mirror and use their reflections to explore hidden parts of themselves, a measure of subjective self-awareness that until now has been shown definitively only in humans and apes, researchers reported yesterday.”

The test is described:

“The new study involved three female Asian elephants at the zoo, in New York City. Workers built a 64-square-foot acrylic mirror, cemented it to plywood, framed it in steel and bolted it to a stone wall of the elephant enclosure.”

At first the elephants explored the mirror. Then:

“That was followed by an eerie sequence in which the animals made slow, rhythmic movements while tracking their reflections. Then, like teenagers, they got hooked.

“All three conducted oral self-exams. Maxine, a 35-year-old female, even used the tip of her trunk to get a better look inside her mouth. She also used her trunk to slowly pull her ear in front of the mirror so she could examine it — ’self-directed’ behaviors the zookeepers had never seen before.

“Moreover, one elephant, Happy, 34, passed the most difficult measure of self-recognition: the mark test. The researchers painted a white X on her left cheek, visible only in the mirror. Later, after moving in and out of view of the mirror, Happy stood directly before the reflective surface and touched the tip of her trunk to the mark repeatedly — an act that, among other insights, requires an understanding that the mark is not on the mirror but on her body.”

Happy did not touch, while looking in the mirror, a similar transparent mark that could be felt but not seen.

You can read the full article and actually watch video of the elephants at the mirror on line here OR tinyurl.com/ya67pv.

And you can send letters to letters [at] washpost.com.

The New York Times covers the story as part of its “Observatory” column in the Science section (Pg F3.)

That paper further stressed that it was only Happy who passed the critical test. We read, however:

“Dr. Reiss said it was not unusual that only one of the three elephants passed this test; with other self-aware species, large numbers of individuals don’t pass the test either.”

(So if Happy had not been there, would not the results have “proven” that elephants have only limited self-awareness, as we have been told about other species?)

The New York Times piece is on line here.

That site also carries the video.

The New York Times takes letters at letters [at] nytimes.com.

The Los Angeles Times has the piece on page A11, by Thomas H. Maugh II, headed, “But do they all think they’re fat?; Like humans, elephants recognize their mirror image, a study reports.”

That article ends with researcher Frans de Waal saying, “the elephant now joins the cognitive elite.” You’ll find it on line here.

Angelenos should respond with letters to letters [at] latimes.com.

You may wish to write in support of the effort to retire poor Ruby from the Los Angeles Zoo to sanctuary. (See www.helpelephants.com/la_zoo.html )

Atlanta’s Journal Constitution put the story, by Mike Toner, on its front page, headed, “Tusk, tusk, is that the way I look?”

Those in Georgia should check it out here OR tinyurl.com/yz3xyp.

and respond via the on line form here.

Those in the UK will find the story, by Alok Jha, on page 9 of the Guardian and on line here. It is headed, “Elephants pass mirror test of self-awareness.” The Guardian takes letters at letters [at] guardian.co.uk.

Since the New York Times is internationally distributed, the editors expect letters from everywhere. And in this age of web-news it is fine to respond to an article you can read on the web from any paper. But please do check for the story in your local paper, where you will have the very best chance of getting published. Small papers publish a large proportion of letters they receive.

The story opens the door for letters specifically about the treatment of elephants in zoos and circuses (see www.savewildelephants.com and www.savezooelephants.com) or more general letters about our treatment of other species. Should intelligence similar to ours, however, be the grounds by which we decide how to treat others? That might be worth discussing. Please the story as a jump-off point for any animal friendly arguments.

Always include your full name, address, and daytime phone number when sending a letter to the editor. Remember that shorter letters are more likely to be published. And please be sure not to use any comments or phrases from me or from any other alerts in your letters. Editors are looking for original responses from their readers.

Yours and the animals’,
Karen Dawn

(DawnWatch is an animal advocacy media watch that looks at animal issues in the media and facilitates one-click responses to the relevant media outlets. You can learn more about it, and sign up for alerts at www.DawnWatch.com. To unsubscribe, go to www.dawnwatch.com/cgi-bin/dada/dawnwatch_unsubscribe.cgi. You are encouraged to forward or reprint DawnWatch alerts but please do so unedited — leave DawnWatch in the title and include this tag line.)

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Tagged: animals animal+rights action+alerts dawnwatch animal+intelligence animal+consciousness ethology elephants zoos mirror+test