可以分享知識和傳播文化的動物

分享知識和傳播文化的動物

Culture and the ability to transmit novel learned behavior from one generation to the next was once believed to be a trait unique to humans. But animal research over the last 75 years has revealed a plethora of examples of cultural transmission throughout the animal kingdom. Some of the creatures that exhibit culture are expected, like dolphins and chimpanzees, while others are surprising, like songbirds and guppies. But they are so varied that scientists suspect that culture may be far more common in nature than we ever thought possible.

文化和將新習得的行為一代一代傳下去的能力曾經(jīng)被認為是人類獨有的特征。但在過去75年的動物研究中，我們發(fā)現(xiàn)了動物王國中文化傳播的過多例子。一些展示文化的生物被認為是正常的，比如海豚和黑猩猩，而另一些則令人驚訝，比如鳴鳥和孔雀魚。但文化的種類如此繁多，科學家們懷疑，文化在自然界中可能比我們想象的更為普遍。

Stuart Westmorland / Getty Images

Here are 5 examples of animals that exhibit culture in their everyday lives.

以下是五種動物在日常生活中展示文化的例子。

1. Japanese Macaques

日本獼猴

Oscar Tarneberg / Getty Images

A study of Japanese macaques in the 1940s by animal researcher Kinji Imanishi was the first instance where the word “culture” was used to describe animal behavior. What began as an observation of monkeys washing sweet potatoes before eating them continued, as more and more generations of macaques have kept up the potato-washing tradition.

20世紀40年代，動物研究者Kinji Imanishi對日本獼猴進行了一項研究，第一次用“文化”這個詞來描述動物行為。一開始是觀察猴子在吃紅薯前清洗，隨著越來越多的獼猴保持清洗紅薯的傳統(tǒng)，這項研究繼續(xù)下去。

Other cultural behaviors displayed by Japanese macaques include the kindness that mothers and daughters exhibit toward each other by offering protection from predators and the sharing of food. The macaques also groom one another as a form of bonding, and use particular calls to request or offer grooming of other monkeys.

日本獼猴的其他文化行為還包括母女之間的友好，保護彼此免受捕食者的傷害，分享食物。獼猴也互相梳理毛發(fā)作為一種結合的形式，并使用特殊的叫聲要求或提供其他猴子的梳理。

2. Whales

鯨魚

Paul Souders / Getty Images

Second only to primates, cultures in whales and other cetaceans are diverse and advanced. A genetic study of beluga whales in the North Pacific revealed that families of whales return to the same locations every year for generations. Researchers believe that the passing down of information about where to travel each year during their long migrations is shared between female belugas and their calves.

僅次于靈長類動物，鯨類和其他動物的文化是多樣和先進的。一項對北太平洋白鯨基因的研究表明，每一代鯨魚都會回到相同的地點。研究人員認為，雌性白鯨和它們的幼鯨分享了它們每年長途遷徙時要去哪里旅行的信息。

Their advanced cultural behavior is thought to be rooted in their intricate vocalizations. Belugas use their high frequency chirps and squeals for communication and echolocation.

他們先進的文化行為被認為植根于他們復雜的發(fā)聲。白鯨用它們的高頻啁啾聲和尖叫聲進行交流和回聲定位。

3. Parrots

鸚鵡

Tambako the Jaguar / Getty Images

Parrots are among the most intelligent animals on the planet, and most species are also highly social and exhibit complex social behavior. Humans have been impressed by their ability to imitate language and learn tricks. But studies of parrots have identified abilities beyond imitation; parrots can display levels of logic and understanding similar to very young children. Further, parrots have been observed showing prosocial behavior, sharing food opportunities with other parrots, and receiving the same in return.

鸚鵡是地球上最聰明的動物之一，大多數(shù)物種也是高度社會性的，并表現(xiàn)出復雜的社會行為。人類對他們模仿語言和學習技巧的能力印象深刻。但對鸚鵡的研究發(fā)現(xiàn)，它們具有超越模仿的能力;鸚鵡表現(xiàn)出的邏輯和理解能力與非常年幼的兒童相似。此外，人們觀察到鸚鵡表現(xiàn)出親社會行為，與其他鸚鵡分享食物的機會，并得到同樣的回報。

4. Songbirds

鳴鳥

middelveld / Getty Images

Songbirds such as warblers, thrushes, and sparrows aren't born knowing how to sing their special songs. Rather, they begin to learn them while in the nest. During this critical period, songbird hatchlings listen to other birds around them and begin to imitate their vocalizations.

像鶯、畫眉和麻雀這樣的鳴鳥并非生來就知道如何唱它們特有的歌。相反，它們在窩里的時候就開始學習了。在這一關鍵時期，鳴禽幼鳥會傾聽周圍其他鳥類的叫聲，并開始模仿它們的叫聲。

5. Guppies

孔雀魚

Robert Pickett / Getty Images

Even the tiny guppy displays evidence of cultural transmission. Guppies are known for their diverse mating behaviors, whereby females tend to copy other females in choosing their preferred mate. If one female likes a particular mate, then other females will take notice. In other words, through the power of imitation, guppy mating behavior is cultural in that mate preference can be uniquely transmitted across a population.

即使是小孔雀魚也顯示出文化傳播的跡象。孔雀魚以其多樣化的交配行為而聞名，雌性在選擇配偶時往往會模仿其他雌性。如果一只雌性喜歡某個特定的配偶，那么其他雌性就會注意到。換句話說，通過模仿的力量，孔雀魚的交配行為是一種文化，因為配偶偏好可以在整個種群中獨一無二地傳播。