ScAm - 09.2019

50 Scientific American, September 2019 Illustration by Lisk Feng

HOMO SAPIENS IS NOT THE ONLY SPECIES THAT LIES.

DISHONESTY ABOUNDS IN THE ANIMAL KINGDOM

By Barbara J. King

The animal world seems to burst with sugar and spice these days. Evidence for

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has captured public imagination. In the ocean, groupers, wrasse and eels form

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wrens recognize one another, form stable partnerships and jointly defend

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chocolate reward to rescue companions made to tread water in a small pool.

For centuries scholars of animal behavior overem-

phasized the role of rivalry and violence among animals.

The current focus on kindness and care is a necessary

corrective to that long-standing view of nature as “red in

tooth and claw,” as poet Alfred, Lord Tennyson put it. Yet

even as we swoon over animal sweetness, there is a risk

of that pendulum swinging too far and eclipsing part of

the story. Many animals carry out disinformation cam-

paigns aimed at others, within and across species. They

mislead, cheat and lie in rampant acts of deception.

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DECEPTION IN NONHUMAN ANIMALS is defined as the send-

ing out of false signals in an attempt to modify the be-

havior of another animal in ways that benefit the sender.

Cuttlefish are masters of such disinformation. Relatives

of the octopus, they have the ability to quickly change

color, thanks to pigment-containing cells in their skin

called chromatophores. Their powers of disguise can

make mating a turbulent affair. In 2017 marine biologists

led by Justine Allen of Brown University reported that

they had observed a male common European cuttlefish

approach a female as they scuba-dived in the Aegean Sea

off Turkey. The female moved away with apparent indif-

ference. The male camouflaged himself against the back-

ground for six minutes, leaving the female seemingly un-

aware of his continued presence. Then, suddenly, he

lunged and grabbed her, and the two mated head to head.

Barbara J. King
is emerita professor
of anthropology
at the College of
William and Mary.
Her studies of
monkeys and apes
have led her to
ex amine emotion
and intelligence in
a wide range of
animal species.

IN BRIEF

Humans are not
alonein their de-
ceitful ways. A wide
variety of animals
have been found to
carry out disinfor-
mation campaigns.
Animals may
mislead members
of their own species
or other species
ÿŸDD®¹ùŒD‘y or mimicry. When the false sig- naling is done with intent, it is called tactical deception— a strategy deployed by creatures rang- Ÿ ́‘†à¹®ùïï ̈yŠå›
to dogs.

ANIMAL BEHAVIOR

DECEPTION

IN THE WILD