What, exactly, do animals think and feel? That's the question at the heart of a new book by Carl Safina, an ecologist who traveled to Kenya, the Pacific Northwest, and Yellowstone to research his latest work, Beyond Words.
"We are always so narcissistic that we're always concerned about us. It's, 'Does our pet really love us, or do thy just want a treat?'" Safina said. "We're concerned about us all the time. 'Are they like us?' The real question is, what is life like for them? And who are they? Like us or not, who are we here on earth with?
WNPR's Patrick Skahill spoke with Diane Orson about Safina's work. Listen below:
In the book, Safina follows along with killer whales in the Pacific Northwest and elephants in Africa.
He also investigates the story of a legendary Yellowstone wolf called Twenty-one, named for the number on his collar. Twenty-one was leader of the largest pack of wolves ever observed in Yellowstone.
For pictures of Twenty-one, and more from an interview with Safina, visit WNPR's science blog, The Beaker.
