Every once in a while the gif of the duckmom losing her children pops up (this one https://v.redd.it/m1wv4hvz9z471) and the original one shows the mom freaking out. This then prompted someone to save the little ducklings. My question is, would other species have a similar reaction to the mother duck in distress?
In: Biology
We do have plenty of video footage of zoo animals interacting with wild animals in their enclosures and help them out in similar ways to how humans would help them out. We also have stories of humans getting help from wild animals. And even some possible cases of wild animals helping out each other. So it is very likely that all animals are capable of feeling some empathy with other species. Especially when they are well fed and have a lot of free time. However we do not see the same level of empathy in animals as in humans. It might be because humans have a lot of time to care for others. Or it might be a trait that made it easier for humans to work with animals.
Empathy is natural in many species, specifically those that have to cooperate with others as babies, even if it’s just siblings or parents. Many animals will help out (or leave alone) the young or the helpless.
One could argue that for evolutionary purposes, it makes sense to ensure your food can live long enough to reproduce to make more food for you, but this could be an accident of simply having to grow up around others and not one them. Not everything in evolution has a clear reason; a lot of it is just stuff that wasn’t harmful enough to get you killed.
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