10 Most Intelligent Animals in the World

Article by surbhi jalan, November 4, 2013

We humans do not own the world alone. We are masters because we are the most intelligent ‘’animals’’ supposedly. Other animals aren’t clever enough to be scientist but they aren’t that brainless either. They have showed different results with some common ones like rats, primates and dolphins. Each animal possess a unique characteristic. From sheep that know how to cure themselves to elephants that carry out ritualistic ceremonies for the dead, our world is filled with secreted gems of genius. So here is the time to Surprise you with the facts about some of the intelligent animals around us.

10. Octopus

Octopus is the brainiest among all invertebrates in the sea. It is because they can change color in less than fraction of a second. They can easily use any tool with the help of their tentacles, for example they exerts skills like precise muscle control to eat. By birth they are highly skilled hunters and use well planned strategies to find food. And like many of the other animals on this list they too have shown the ability to solve some very complicated and difficult problems. They possess traits like curiosity, boredom, learning ability and the capacity to use tools. The octopus exerts skills like precise muscle control to eat.

9. Squirrel

 
Squirrels may be small by size but their brains are not. They have this innate ability to remember their home by identifying locality, trees, bushes, flowers, etc. During every fall, they bury atleast thousands of nuts in many places and then they can easily remember where to find all these nuts during winter. Their intelligence is mainly very much focused on one thing that is gathering food.  They are uniquely adapted with storing provisions. Their minds are everything which includes a ridiculous memory to remember where they have stored it.

8. Pig

According to some experts pigs are one of the smartest animals as a pet – more than cats and dogs. They are emotional, sensitive, have feelings, gets easily bored and are also very social to humans. Few experiments in 1990s have shown the sign of their cleverness. Researchers have shown that, a pig of middle age can be as smart as a three year old human being. They possess the ability to learn new skills easily as they can adapt to any situations. They are trained to move cursor on a video screen using their snouts. The cursor is used to distinguish between scribbles they already knew and the new ones. They learned and performed the task as quickly as chimpanzees.

7. Dog

 
Dogs are the man’s best friend. They are among those animals that are part of our daily life. They can identify and remember animal as well as human faces. They are sensitive, jealous and they won’t forget anyone hurting them throughout their life span.Border collie is widely accepted as the most intelligent dog breed in the world .This breed of dog can be used for tending sheep and other cattle. This pet can easily perform any task and has many abilities. They can be trained well for personal help as well as for rescue purposes. In general they learn new skills very easily and are quick to respond to any human training.

6. Crow

 
Along with parrots, crows are other intelligent birds in the world. They possess the ability to solve complicated problems and adapt to difficult situations, which can be easily identified in the way they gather food and collect resources for their daily activities. For example, occasionally they put nuts on the street and wait for car or pedestrian to crack the nuts and then eat them. Crows are crafty critters; they are born with a tool making skill. They fashion tools from things like twigs, feathers and other bits of debris to collect food from hard places. They are born with a tool-making ethic, but they learn this skill by watching their elders, which is again a sign of higher intelligence.

5. Sheep

According to scientists and researchers sheep possess an incredible kind of instinctive ability and intelligence beyond our imaginations. If they are threatened, they make a large groups and run away from predators. Sheep have the ability to remember and identify animal as well as human faces. They can easily identify when a fellow sheep mate is lost in their flock. They also exhibit a wide range of emotions, feelings and responses to various activities around them which shows a high level of intelligence. Some researchers believe that sheep possess the most powerful memories, better than human in certain situations.

4. Parrot

 
Parrots are most beautiful and loving among all the birds in the world. They are famous for their ability to talk is pure mimicry as most of us know parrots have excellent memories and like many other intelligent animals they are capable of solving complicated problems. They have innate ability to mimic human words, understand their meaning and later use them to make sentences. They can answer easy questions and can also use tools using their beak. This is something that makes them unique from other birds. African gray Parrot is the best species in terms of intelligence among all. This breed can communicate with each other using body gestures, songs and calls. They can be trained to create various voices and small sentences.

3. Dolphin

 
According to scientists when it comes to body mass to brain ratio, dolphins have the largest brains in the animal kingdom. They are characterized by their advanced communication skills, they also have been considered to be self aware of their ability to recognize themselves in a mirror. They are the smartest aquatic animal and use whistling sound to communicate. Bottlenose Dolphin who lives in the warm water is the most intelligent species of dolphins. Scientists have discovered that they have very large brain and the cerebral cortex, which is responsible for social communications. It is seen that they can be trained easily and perform difficult tasks. They possess the amazing ability to think, plan and solve difficult problems.

2. Elephant

The complete size of an elephant’s brain suggests that they must know a thing or two more about the world. It is very large animal who have three different species. They have been seen consoling their family members, helping other group in times of need, playing in water and interacting with each other through vibrations sensed in their feet. Some identify themselves in the mirror too. In many parts of the world elephant is seen as a symbol of wisdom and known for their astonishing memories. Their brain is very large as compared to all present animals on this universe. They also possess excellent hearing ability; use their ears and trunks to listen. They use their brains to generate and route complex social interactions and seem to even possess traits such as empathy. They create a mental map and remember the exact location of water holes that feed them in the past but have not visited for years now. They can communicate with bellows, roars and can even send voice distantly using the land. Elephants have showcased a variety of behaviors. Including actions connected with grief, creating music, love, play, and the use of classy equipments.  They have unexpected taste for artistic achievement hence, they can paint a portrait.

1. Gorillas & Chimpanzees

Chimpanzee is the most intelligent animal with the highest abilities and capabilities to perform various activities. They have better memory than any other animals. Apart from the fact that they look like humans, they also have the capacity to think and analyze like humans. They can easily be taught to use computers, to crack mathematical problems and this may be the world uppermost ability in any animal. Chimpanzees can quickly adapt sign language and perform them to communicate with humans. Apart from the fact that they look like humans, they also have the capacity to think and analyze like humans. They are so skilled that they can easily mandate their environment and utilize tools in order to attain certain goal. By and large they are the smartest primate and one of the smartest animals in the world.