Lógos Sokratikós

"Humanlike behavior" = behavior we think humans do and think other animals don't. Therefore, since the concept itself is based on ignorance and prejudice, people will always be surprised to find out the truth!

Duh!

elemental

Has anyone mentioned the bower bird yet?

http://montereybay.com/creagrus/bowerbirds.html

Malintent

Pigs too...

I met a farmer that had a pig following him around. A pig with a wooden leg. I asked him about the pig with the wooden leg and he told me this incredible story about how the barn caught fire one night and set the house up as well. The pig ran into the burning barn and freed all the animals in there. Then, it ran into the smoke filled house where the farmer's children were unconscious and dragged them out. Then it ran in AGAIN and grabbed the farmer and his wife. So I asked how the pig lost it's leg.. if he got burned.. and the farmer said, "a pig that great you don't eat all at once!"

Griff

Both as a lifetime pet-owner and a student of the sciences, I am skeptical of any significant difference between humans and similarly developed eutherians. My interactions with them bear a great deal of similarity to my interactions with other humans. Degrees of productivity seem lowest in euarchontoglires, highest in carnivorans. Euarchontans, in my long experience, have consistently proven themselves to be moody, touchy, ahygeinic, and lacking in intelligence. The glires are cleaner, but they tend to bite you for no reason. The euarchontans will usually just throw their feces at you and save themselves the trouble.

Yeshi

so the farmer shows low animal behaviour (eating a friend that helped you) to a pig that showed altruistic (human) behaviour. k.

Velexia

Magpies collect shiny objects to attract mates. My house cat eats by picking up food with his paw and bring it to his mouth. It's pretty easy to find "human-like behavior in animals."

Especially when you define just what "human-like behavior" is. Fighting with each other for women and resources (seen everywhere in nature). Being compassionate to family members (seen everywhere in nature). ...Basically, you'd be better off trying to find things that are NOT "human-like" in animals... considering... [whispered hush-hush]... we are animals.

Velexia

Also, there are insects which procreate by "Traumatic Insemination" where the male injects himself forcefully into the female via puncturing in no special area... through the back, face, side, what have you. Often the female subject to this form of intercourse retaliates with her own phallus-like spear attack, just to get revenge.

http://www.pnas.org/cgi/content/full/101440698v1

Monkey Wrench

Wolfs and dog smile and will reach out one paw as if to shake hands. Thats why its so easy to teach dogs to shake hands. The smile and the out stretched paw/hand are inborn traits in humans and dogs and both mean the same thing. Dogs and humans all understand pointing so do chimps.
There are some forms of comunication that cross species lines.

Newton's Cat

In the wild chimpanzees have "rock concerts".

Condraz23

Interesting. I guess this could have some parallels with human BDSM.