Anus photos can build brand loyalty, in monkeys at least
Everyone knows that in advertising sex sells, and it turns out that sex-themed adverts even work on rhesus macaques
Ants care for wounded comrades by licking their wounds clean
If a Matabele ant loses a limb in a battle with termites, its nestmates will tend its injuries - a behaviour never before seen in any non-human animal
Birds ‘dream sing’ by moving their vocal muscles in their sleep
Zebra finches sing during the day, and at night while they sleep their vocal organs act out the motions of singing, a bit like a sleepwalking person
How besieged ants decide when it’s time to abandon their nests
Colonies of turtle ants are often attacked by competing species, and the ants understand enough military strategy to decide when certain nests should be abandoned
After crows fight they touch and preen each other to make up
Carrion crows sometimes have violent squabbles over food, but afterwards the aggressor will often sit by the victim as if to console them and reconcile
Great tits avoid bad food after seeing grossed-out friends
If a great tit eats something nasty, it will disgustedly wipe its beak on a branch – and other great tits watch and learn
Male monkeys with masculine faces draw long lingering glances
Female monkeys spend more time staring at males that have highly masculine facial features, but we don’t know if they fancy them or fear them
Huge dose of brain chemical dopamine may have made us smart
Two “thinking” regions of human brains are much richer in a neurotransmitter called dopamine than the equivalent brain regions in apes and monkeys
Sheep learn to recognise celebrity faces from different angles
The animals were as good as humans at recognising mugshots of the same celebs from different angles, showing sophisticated brain processing of imagery
Bees are first insects shown to understand the concept of zero
Zero is not an easy idea to grasp, even for young humans – but experiments suggest bees might be up to the challenge