Can animals(non humans) lie?

Is there any evidence of this?

(obviously none verbose)

 

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Studies with apes that have been taught sign language have been shown to lie.

I also watched a show about wolves once, and I don't remember the details, but it looked as though wolves have the capacity to mislead, or lie in a sense.

 

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Interesting.

Have you got a reliable link(about the apes)?

 

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I wish I did... I'd like to see it again myself. The show on wolves was actually much more fascinating though... Wish I could remember that one too. They were both shows that I saw on TV.
The wolf show blew my mind though man. They are really like people a lot more than you would imagine.
At any rate, I'm sure if you searched around youtube for the apes, something would pop up.
Now I'm gonna go look. I'll let you know if I find anything,

 

Yep.

http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa4128/is_200610/ai_n17194550
http://homepage.mac.com/cssfan/b_0506081636.html
http://books.google.com/books?id=eH...&hl=en&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=3&ct=result

~Raithere

 

snakes also mislead...they pretend that they are dead...

 

Only the dead do not lie.

 

Champion.

I know that wolves in particular are very, erm, human like I suppose.

I'll check back tomorrow as I must sleep.

 

Thanks Raithere, good to see you around.

I'll check the links out tomorrow.

 

Even more amazing, though I can't find any mention of him lying, is Alex.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=sYk-wE18BTo&feature=PlayList&p=59EE46C7B9D8D37E&index=118
http://youtube.com/watch?v=WGiARReTwBw

~Raithere

 

Cats lie, non-verbally. They fall off a table, ungracefully. Then pretend to be non-chalant, perhaps lick their fur. The message='nothing happened'.

 

Is that to avoid humiliation perhaps? My dog often pretends like he doesn't know what he did. Or if you yell at him for something he did he pretends like he can't see or hear you. Sometimes its funny, but other times it just makes me mad that he ignores me when I'm speaking to him.

 

I think cats have a strong sense of being seen objects. I don't think dogs have the same sense of themselves. I am not saying they can't lie, but I don't think they are very good at covering up their emotions.

 

No my dog doesn't hide his emotions. If he's mad then he's mad and he doesn't pretend to be anything else. He usually only acts sneaky or deceptive if he knows he did something wrong.

 

Definitely.
Sometimes they pretend they are completely not interested in your sandwich for example, only to steal it the second you turn your back.
Also, I once locked in my cat in the living room by accident. So he had no choice but to poop on the floor.
When I got home he didn't know how fast to get outside, which was completely untypical for him. Afterwards he actually acted ashamed.

 

Yup, all the time.

 

I have two kittens now and when the play-fight they sometimes act as if they are not interested in play-fighting anymore and walk away.
When the other eventually turns its back.. ATTACK !

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If that's not lying I don't know what is lol

 

I'm not sure there is any emotion that you can attribute to just humans. Most animals seem capable of feeling all the things we feel. Even fish; I was blown away by all of the emotions they show after doing an internship at the aquarium.

 

I think insect mimicry, such as the Viceroy butterfly could be considered a form of lying.

 

Deception does run rampant in the animal kingdom it seems. I wonder if an ape knows it's lying(for example)? I guess it would require some form of lie detector test. A fish that uses its tail as bait to get food I wouldn't class as deception, it is just its way of surviving, I know the victim was decieved but the hunter knows no different.