Wild Animals at Play
Have you ever seen wild animals having fun?
One of my walking friends and I developed a little in-joke between us: whenever a blue jay would screech raucously, we had to say, “Blue jay says play!” and do a little funny dance.
Have you ever had the privilege of seeing wild animals play?
If you’ve seen a wild animal playing, you were probably watching a mammal, because eighty percent of mammals play. Some smart birds play, too, such as ravens, which will pick up and play with almost any object, from sticks to keys to bottle caps. Science News says even crocodiles show evidence of some play behavior. (Really? Pretty sure I wouldn’t trust a playful croc.)
But what exactly is play, anyway, and what’s it for?
The science of animal behavior, ethology, defines animal play as a voluntary action undertaken for pleasure and enjoyment that doesn’t directly increase survival. The difference between play and any other type of activity is creativity. Play often involves manipulating an object to see what it will do or trying out new body positions to test the animal’s own limits.
Growing animals engage in four types of play:
Parental bonding play. This is vocalizing and touching between mother and baby, which helps the baby’s development. Jane Goodall noticed that mother chimpanzees would touch and tickle their babies from birth, even though the babies didn’t respond until six months. Once the baby started reacting and initiating touch games, then the mother would allow other young chimpanzees to start interacting with the baby by vocalizing and hitting the ground.
Movement and body play. Running, jumping, stretching and vocalizing (growling or singing), help young animals test their bodies’ limits and gain self-confidence, as well as teaching them to deal with unexpected situations and uncertain footing in the future when chasing prey or being chased by predators. This kind of play affects brain organization.
Object play. This is basically just fooling around with an object for fun. The more intensely the object is manipulated, the more neural connections are developed.
Social play. Playing with friends helps young animals develop social skills and practice, in a safe setting, different situations that will be important in adulthood, such as play fighting, tests of strength, learning when to back off, and how to resolve conflicts. Some animals play hide and seek.
(Humans engage in these four types of play, as well as more complex forms of play, such as imaginative play, where a separate world is created, storytelling play, and creative play, like drawing or music.)
Most primates continue with some forms of play as adults because it is amusing and relaxing. Some other animals play as adults. Ravens slide down snow, otters slide down smooth rocks, dolphins blow bubble rings to swim through, and sea lions throw starfish at each other.
I have had the pleasure of watching coyotes play chase tag with each other. I’ve seen minks play diving games with each other. I’ve watched young deer mock-fight. I’ve seen blue jays play with sticks and acorns. I’ve watched baby monkeys tumble together. I’ve laughed at the sheer joy of a newborn fawn dancing around a meadow. I’ve seen young field mice jump and spin with each other. And I love to watch squirrels chase each other up and down trees.
My favorite moment of wild animal play was watching a dozen crows line up on the edge of a flat industrial roof next to an air conditioning vent. One at a time, they would fly into the backwash of the AC and be tumbled in the air almost the full length of the roof before they could get their wings working and fly back wobbly to sit on the edge of the roof again, awaiting their next turn. I sat transfixed for a whole lunch hour watching them repeat the game over and over.
So, when was the last time you tickled somebody, or lay on your back and played with your toes, or bent a green stick to see if you could break it, or jumped to see if you could touch that branch, just for fun?
Blue jay says play!
