POLITICAL ANIMALS: How Animals Vote. Lessons In Democracy From The Animal Kingdom.
Species ranging from primates all the way to insects have methods for finding agreement that are surprisingly democratic.
ELIZABETH PRESTON: Are humans the only animals that caucus? As the early 2020 presidential election season suggests, there are probably more natural and efficient ways to make a group choice. But we’re certainly not the only animals on Earth that vote. We’re not even the only primates that primary. Any animal living in a group needs to make decisions as a group, too.
Even when they don’t agree with their companions, animals rely on one another for protection or help finding food. So they have to find ways to reach consensus about what the group should do next, or where it should live. While they may not conduct continent-spanning electoral contests like Super Tuesday, species ranging from primates all the way to insects have methods for finding agreement that are surprisingly democratic. SOURCE…
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