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Animal Behavior

Animal Instinct, Learning, and Emotions

Do animals have friends?

Animals often do form social attachments (friends) among their peers and other animals. For example, among savanna baboons, bonds between males and females are a central feature of a society. Other “friendlike” behaviors have been seen, too: allogrooming is when the animal grooms another animal, usually of the same species. Also, reciprocal altruism is a phenomenon in which an animal helps another unrelated animal. These enduring bonds range from a moose “in love” with a horse to a cat who snuggles with a pet mouse.



Lions are cooperative hunters, taking down large prey by coordinating their efforts. Lionesses do much of the work, but male lions also participate in hunting for their prides.