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Can Animals Count?

A thousand years ago, people believed that being able to count was what made humans different from animals.

But now it turns out that lots of animals can count. And elephants are top of the class when it comes to sums, according to scientists.

So how do they know that?

They tested an elephant called Ashiya, using 2 tin buckets and a load of apples. They dropped 3 apples into 1 bucket and 1 apple into a second, then 4 more apples into the first and 5 into the second. The fruit was dropped quickly and in clusters, forcing Ashiya to keep a running total in her head. Without being able to see inside the buckets, Ashiya instantly worked out that the first bucket had the most apples. It wasn't just a lucky guess - the test was run over and over again, and Ashiya got it right nearly every time!

Elephants are not the only animals who can add up. Dogs and chimps can add numbers up to 4. But the amazing thing about elephants is that they can count up to 8, and maybe even higher.

So why would elephants need to count?

In the wild, they live in close-knit groups of up to 8 animals, so they might just need to keep track of everyone!

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