Recognising ourselves in a reflection is widely taken to be a marker of intelligence, thought Polly, turning her head this way and that into the mirror. “Why is that?” she thought. Philosophical thoughts were the best way to pass the time.
Some animals are surprised to see a being in a mirror, said the TV left on for her the other day. Then the cleverer ones notice this mirror being moves in perfect sync with themselves, the documentary said.
Typically animals will make an unusual movement to check, bobbing up and down, waving a limb or winking an eye to see if their companion does the same. Polly winked, bobbed and stood on one leg into the mirror, as she had so often.
Animals may also walk, slither, hop, scurry or swim behind the mirror to see what is there, the TV had told her. Polly shuffled behind her mirror, past the head of millet hanging from her cage. Animals are surprised the back does not match the front.
Polly shrieked in astonishment. It never got old.
One conclusion some animals come to, the TV said, is that the mirror contains some kind of impression of themselves. “But how could that be?” thought Polly. “The mirror is far too thin to contain another me.”
Polly squawked in her confusion. And the being in the mirror made no noise at all. How could that be her? If it was her then why did it remain silent?
Thinking that the thing in the mirror is you is only thought to be right because it is what humans think, Polly concluded with a whistle.
Chimpanzees, bonobos, orangutans, dolphins, orcas, elephants, magpies and even some ants think the same way as, but that does not make them special. Polly flapped her wings and shrieking at the top of her lungs:
This conclusion is more about ego than logic. Why should we assume a reflection is a version of ourselves just because it does what we do? Might the reflection not be the master of the situation? Or the being in the mirror may do the same thing as us as a matter of choice?
Humans think animals are clever when they appear to think the same way they do. This is less a measure of intelligence than it is a measure of human eagerness to see a reflection of themselves. ■