Ridgway Public Library

"People often assume a cognitive ladder, from lower to higher forms, with our own intelligence at the top. But what if it is more like a bush, with cognition taking different forms that are often incomparable to ours? Would you presume yourself dumber than a squirrel because you're less adept at recalling the locations of hundreds of buried acorns? Or would you judge your perception of your surroundings as more sophisticated than that of a echolocating...

"...the team behind The Frog Scientist take you on a research trip to New Caledonia in the Pacific Ocean to follow crows in aviaries and in the wild while answering many thought-provoking questions like: "Can a crow outsmart a scientist?"--

"Dogs have been mankind's faithful companions for tens of thousands of years, yet today they are regularly treated as either pack-following wolves or furry humans. The truth is, dogs are neither--and our misunderstanding has put them in serious crisis. What dogs really need is a spokesperson, someone who will assert their specific needs. Renowned anthrozoologist Dr. John Bradshaw has made a career of studying human-animal interactions, and in Dog...

"Caesar ... [is] a chimpanzee who gains human-like intelligence and emotions from an experimental drug. Raised like a child by the drug's creator ..., Caesar ultimately finds himself taken from the humans he loves and imprisoned. Seeking justice, Caesar assembles a simian army and escapes--putting man and primate on a collision course that could change the planet forever"--Container.

Discover the secrets and myths about animal intelligence.

In Mind of the Raven, Bernd Heinrich, award-winning naturalist, finds himself dreaming of ravens and decides he must get to the truth about this animal reputed to be so intelligent. Much like a sleuth, Heinrich involves us in his quest, letting one clue lead to the next. But as animals can only be spied on by getting quite close, Heinrich adopts ravens, thereby becoming a raven father," as well as observing them in their natural habitat, studying...

Martha and Elizabeth have their dogs do tricks in order to prove which is smartest, but when Martha accidentally falls in the water, Clifford proves he is best

A breathtaking look into the mysterious world of dolphins and their conflicted history with man. Since the dawn of recorded history, humans have felt a kinship with the sleek and beautiful dolphin, an animal whose playfulness, sociability, and intelligence seems like an aquatic mirror of mankind. In recent decades, scientists have discovered dolphins recognize themselves in reflections, count, feel despondent, adorn themselves, rescue one another,...

As Charles Darwin suggested more than a century ago, the differences between animals and humans are "of degree and not of kind." Not long ago, ethologists denied that animals had emotions or true intelligence. Now, we know that rats laugh when tickled, magpies mourn as they cover the departed with greenery, female whales travel thousands of miles for annual reunions with their gal pals, seals navigate by the stars, bears hum when happy, and crows...