What is animal cognition?

Animal cognition encompasses the mental capacities and processes of non-human animals, spanning learning, memory, perception, and thinking. Researchers study these abilities across a wide range of species, including mammals, birds, reptiles, fish, and invertebrates. The field draws heavily on comparative psychology, ethology, behavioral ecology, and evolutionary psychology.

What we know

• Animal cognition encompasses the mental capacities of non-human animals, which includes insect cognition. [1, 2]
• The study of animal conditioning and learning in this field developed from comparative psychology. [2]
• Researchers have examined animal cognition in diverse groups such as mammals, birds, reptiles, fish, and invertebrates. [2]
• The discipline is strongly influenced by research in ethology, behavioral ecology, and evolutionary psychology. [2]

Where to go next

• what caused itHow does comparative psychology study learning?
• compared withWhat is cognitive ethology?
• the bigger pictureWhat are general cognitive processes?
• a case in pointHow do cephalopods demonstrate intelligence?
• how it workedWhat methods do scientists use to test animal minds?
• an unexpected connectionHow do Aristotle's ancient works connect to modern cognition?Writings on metacognition date back to ancient Greek philosophy by Aristotle, long before modern cognitive science and comparative psychology were established.

Sources

• [1]animal cognition (Wikidata Q499210) · CC0 1.0
• [2]Animal cognition · CC BY-SA 4.0
• [3]Animal Cognition · CC BY-SA 4.0
• [4]Cognition · CC BY-SA 4.0
• [5]Metacognition · CC BY-SA 4.0