![]() ![]() Findings suggestive of self-recognition in mammals other than apes have been reported for dolphins and elephants. Prevalence is about 75% in young adults and considerably less in young and aging individuals. ![]() It should be mentioned that even in the chimpanzee, the species most studied and with the most convincing findings, clear-cut evidence of self-recognition is not obtained in all individuals tested. In gorillas and gibbons, some authors reported failure of self-recognition whereas others reported positive findings in at least one individual. Fairly clear evidence of this has been obtained for chimpanzees, orang-utans, and pygmy chimpanzees. If an individual is experimentally provided with a mark that cannot be directly seen but is, however, visible in the mirror, increased exploration of the own body and self-directed actions towards the mark suggest that the mirror image is being perceived as self. This suggestive evidence of self-recognition is further corroborated by the mirror and mark test. Social behavior decreases, and the mirror is used for exploration of the own body. In a few ape species, however, behavior changes over repeated presentations with a mirror. Most animals exposed to a mirror respond with social behavior, e.g., aggressive displays, and continue to do so during repeated testing. Since the pioneering work by Gallup, a number of studies have investigated the occurrence of mirror-induced self-directed behavior in animals of a great range of species. It further proves that the neocortex is not a prerequisite for self-recognition. This finding shows that elaborate cognitive skills arose independently in corvids and primates, taxonomic groups with an evolutionary history that diverged about 300 million years ago. Using the mark test, we obtained evidence for mirror self-recognition in the European Magpie, Pica pica. Although experimental evidence in nonmammalian species has been lacking, some birds from the corvid family show skill in tasks that require perspective taking, a likely prerequisite for the occurrence of mirror self-recognition. Mirror self-recognition has been shown in apes and, recently, in dolphins and elephants. In these experiments, subjects are placed in front of a mirror and provided with a mark that cannot be seen directly but is visible in the mirror. In nonhuman species and in children, the “mark test” has been used as an indicator of self-recognition. ![]() They suggest that essential components of human self-recognition have evolved independently in different vertebrate classes with a separate evolutionary history.Ī crucial step in the emergence of self-recognition is the understanding that one's own mirror reflection does not represent another individual but oneself. Our findings provide the first evidence of mirror self-recognition in a non-mammalian species. When provided with a mark, magpies showed spontaneous mark-directed behavior. As in apes, some individuals behaved in front of the mirror as if they were testing behavioral contingencies. We investigated mirror-induced behavior in the magpie, a songbird species from the crow family. In apes, self-directed behavior in response to a mirror has been taken as evidence of self-recognition. It is, however, not yet clear whether these skills are accompanied by an understanding of the self. This is indicated by feats such as tool use, episodic-like memory, and the ability to use one's own experience in predicting the behavior of conspecifics. Comparative studies suggest that at least some bird species have evolved mental skills similar to those found in humans and apes. ![]()
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