[Rob Anzellotti]

Rob Anzellotti  asked the Naked Scientists:

   

Chris,



There has been much made recently about animals making and using tools, from primates to birds. Has anyone ever observed nonhuman animals using found objects as weapons?



Thanks,

Rob Anzellotti

Cologne Germany



What do you think?

[RD]

Zoo chimp 'planned' stone attacks

Chimpanzees have long been suspected of planning ahead

A male chimpanzee in a Swedish zoo planned hundreds of stone-throwing attacks on zoo visitors, according to researchers.

Keepers at Furuvik Zoo found that the chimp collected and stored stones that he would later use as missiles.

Further, the chimp learned to recognise how and when parts of his concrete enclosure could be pulled apart to fashion further projectiles.

The findings are reported in the journal Current Biology.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/7928996.stm

[FatRat]

Neotropical primates use branches to throw them at tourists.

[Bonaparte]

Wow this is an old thread but here goes....

I have observed a dog using a weapon to admonish another dog for trespassing.

It was very deliberately done to avoid getting into trouble by biting, growling or whatever is usual for them.

I have it on video.

So yes, dogs use things at paw as weapons sometimes also.

[Bonaparte]

An example of dogs using weapons in a natural setting might be...

A dog (A) is playing with a stick.

A puppy perhaps (maybe even it's own - a dog that it is not allowed to act aggressively towards by pack law anyway), (B) wanders into it's play area.

Sometimes the dog (A) will whack the offender (B) with the stick and feign an accidental occurrence, it does this to avoid retaliation by other pack members or the dog (B) itself, if it was a more dominant one.

This teaches the other dog to stay away or ask permission before walking through.

[CliffordK]

What constitutes a weapon?

Otters use stones to crack the shells of their prey.

[Bonaparte]

Yes, that is an example of using a tool.

By weapon, I mean anything that is used as an instrument of behavior modification, combined with the use of force. As in the above example for instance, a stick is not a weapon while the dog is playing with it, it becomes one as soon as it is directed against another dog with intention and force.

As in this example of a domestic dog using a toy:

(slow motion - strike only)