when animals make war

Loïc Bollache

(HumenSciences, 231 pages, 2023)

***RIGHTS SOLD IN KOREAN AND COMPLEX CHINESE***

Can we speak of war among the non-human animal kingdom? After his celebrated book on animal intelligence, Loïc Bollache tackles the question by gathering an eyebrow-raising array of animal behavior case studies by scientists from around the world. Since Jane Goodall’s 1974 sobering discovery of organized turf wars among chimpanzees that shattered her idyllic conception of their social organization, new research has revealed that other species are not to be outdone when it comes to violence. Forget the friendly dolphin Flipper, and don’t be deceived by the quietly herbivorous hippopotamuses. There exist gangs of rapist dolphins, murderous crows, rogue penguins, kamikaze ants, pitched battles among meerkats and mongooses, deadly disputes among pistol shrimps, not to mention termites’ professional armies and the use of chemical weapons by certain insects.

Avoiding the trap of projecting onto other species our own world, Bollache begins by clarifying what war is and is not: not predation, not raids; but, rather, aggressive actions targeted at another group or an individual. Not only to defend one’s territory but also to reproduce or prevent others from doing so, to weaken an opposing clan, and at times simply for power. Civil wars break out, alliances of convenience are forged, tyrants are driven away. Endless cycles of vendettas are triggered. Bollache also brings forth little-mentioned behaviors such as social exclusion (among catfish), stigmatization, and ostracism that lead to the rejection of certain individuals by their own clan. There are scapegoats even in the chicken coop! 

If this seems terrifying, the book ends on a hopeful note: not all conflicts in the animal world are resolved through violence. Most species develop strategies to avoid confrontation and violence because those jeopardize their ability to survive. They also know how to peacefully resolve situations conducive to conflict. The organization of certain species sometimes has similarities to that of our societies, such as with bees whose social structure is close to a delegate model of democracy. Fortunately, many animals prefer cooperation—certain bats even practice blood donation—and others such as bonobos, wolves, hyenas, and even goats implement consolation and reconciliation behaviors in order to restore harmony.

Encompassing and accessible, When Animals Make War is an ode to the diversity of the living world.

Loïc Bollache is professor of ecology at the CNRS Chrono-Environment Laboratory at the University of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté. He received the 2021 Jacques Lacroix Prize from the French Academy for Comment pensent les animaux (humenSciences, 2020).