Isn’t this a lovely picture? Its from a very seminal work by Lewis Henry Morgan entitled “The American Beaver and His Works”. Morgan was a lawyer turned Iroquois-friend, turned anthropologist and was remarkable for his progressive thinking about cultures and intelligence. He used his study of beavers (he called them “mutes” so he must not of heard them talking…) to question the 1800’s generally accepted notion that animal behavior is based soley on instinct.
“I propose to submit, in a brief form, a series
of considerations or arguments based upon the
structural organization, and authenticated acts, of
the higher animals, tending to show: first, that
they possess a mental principle; secondly, that
the qualities which it manifests are essentially
the same as those displayed by the human mind;
and lastly, that the difference between these
qualities, and inferentially, between the
principles they respectively represent, is one of
degree and not of kind” (Morgan 1868: 252) .
By studying dams, lodges and canals and the way they adapted to specific habitats, Morgan was able to argue fairly effectively that beavers were using complex thinking that combined instinct with pragmatic appraisal and available resources. Beaver friend Bob Arnebeck discusses Morgan’s work here. This was no small feat, and Morgan recognized that it was a significant challenge to the idea that only humans could make these kinds of decisions.
I have to say it is fairly remarkable to me that a man more than a hundred years ago was already beginning to notice that beaver mythology had gotten out of hand. Do you know that some had written about a “slave beaver” who did the work for the colony, but didn’t enjoy its spoils and had a less lustrous coat? Hmm I wonder what in our culture could have made people think that?
“I cannot refrain from smiling when I read the accounts of different authors who have written on the economy of these animals, as there seem to be a contest between them who shall most exceed in fiction”. page 309.
Ahh a man after my own heart. For an overview, check out this weirdly contextual article from Irene Cheng of Cabinet Maginzine (?) it has a lovely description of his work which got me thinking. The link to the original text is on google books and is wholly searchable.
Oh and this morning Jon stopped to see our “mutes” finishing their dam repairs. A yearling picked up a final stick, put it in the gap of the primary dam, and then swam off to bed.
The American Beaver and His Works By Lewis Henry Morgan
The American Beaver and His Works By Lewis Henry Morgan
Got that? The “Slave beaver” builds dams by breaking sticks with its head, giving it a little worn patch, and the “Master beaver” takes it easy and spends his days eating fish. Just want to make sure you’re all paying attention.
