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Living psychology: animal minds
Living psychology: animal minds

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5.2 Cooperating elephants

Elephants have also been shown to cooperate with each other in order to solve a problem. Plotnik and colleagues (2011) tested pairs of elephants, who were led to a study area where there was a fence, with food on a tray on the other side of the fence, some distance out of reach. The food could be pulled to within their reach by means of a rope looped around the back of the tray, but only by both elephants working together. If one elephant pulled on the rope alone, it would simply slip round the back of the food tray. Figure 9 is an illustration of the problem set-up.

Described image
Figure 9 Plotnik and colleagues’ cooperative problem-solving task for elephants: (a) a ground view from beyond the tray of food; (b) a side view from the base of the barrier (fence)

Crucially, to solve the task, each elephant had to not only work out that solution but also understand that the other elephant had worked it out too and act accordingly. This is indeed what the elephants did! If one elephant was allowed into the study area before the other, the first elephant would wait until the second elephant had arrived and was able to assist before pulling on the rope. Furthermore, if one elephant’s end of the rope was out of reach, the other elephant, whose end was within reach, seemed to understand this and did not bother pulling the rope. The elephants in Plotnik’s study seemed to understand both the problem itself and each other’s role in solving it.

Does this study indicate that the elephants understood each other’s goals, desires and intentions? In other words, does this study provide evidence that the elephants possess a ToM? This is a tricky question to answer from such behavioural evidence, as you will explore further in Section 6 of this course. But first, you will look at the advanced problem-solving abilities of some more birds.