Neuron counts say one thing, party tricks say another. Fourteen species, and the ones with the best reputation are not always the ones with the best evidence.
1ChimpanzeeOur closest living relative, capable of tool use, tactical deception and short-term memory feats that beat most humans.
2Bottlenose DolphinMarine mammal that recognises itself in mirrors, names itself with signature whistles and hunts cooperatively.
3African Grey ParrotParrot famous for using hundreds of words in context rather than parroting them back.
4OrangutanGreat ape that builds nests, uses leaf tools and solves puzzles with unusual patience.
5African ElephantLong-memoried herd animal that mourns its dead and passes migration routes down generations.
6CrowCorvid that bends wire into hooks, plans several steps ahead and remembers human faces for years.
7OctopusInvertebrate with neurons spread through its arms, known for opening jars and escaping tanks.
8PigFarm animal that learns joystick video games and outperforms dogs on some problem-solving tests.
9DogDomestic dog, carrying roughly 530 million cortical neurons and an unmatched talent for reading human gestures.
10CatDomestic cat, with about 250 million cortical neurons and a well-documented refusal to perform on demand.
11OrcaApex predator with distinct hunting cultures and dialects passed between pods.
12RaccoonUrban problem-solver that beats latches, lids and bins that were designed to stop it.
13HorseHerd animal that reads human facial expressions and remembers people who treated it well.
14SquirrelRodent that caches thousands of nuts and fakes burials when it suspects it is being watched.
Comments 1
Roughly 530 million cortical neurons in the dog against 250 million in the cat, counted at Vanderbilt in 2017, and both sit behind a crow and an octopus: https://youpick.best/articles/dogs-vs-cats-ranked
YP
ypb-teamAug 21
