Cognitive tests and landmark experiments in cetaceans

The evidence for cetacean intelligence

From mirror self-recognition (Reiss & Marino 2001) to the vocal imitation of Wikie (Abramson 2018), cetaceans have passed the most demanding cognitive tests designed for the great apes. Here are 15 foundational experiments.

Going further

Cetacean cognition also comes through in: the brain and cognition, the catalogue of tools, the overview of intelligence and social cohesion.

The mirror test and imitation: the key experiments

Cetacean cognition has been the subject of emblematic experiments. Diana Reiss and Lori Marino showed as early as 2001 (PNAS) that the common bottlenose dolphin passes Gallup’s mirror test: marked with a spot, it turns its body to examine the mark, evidence of self-awareness. The test has since been passed by the killer whale, the beluga and even the manta ray.

Vocal imitation is attested in the beluga Noc (Ridgway et al. 2012), which imitated the human voice, and in the killer whale Wikie at Marineland Antibes, which reproduced “hello” and “bye bye” (Abramson et al. 2018, Proc Roy Soc B). The signature whistle of the common bottlenose dolphin, identified by Vincent Janik & Peter Slater, works like a proper name, culturally transmitted and kept for life.