Giraffes may be better at maths than many people realise, with a new study revealing that the towering animals can perform simple mental calculations to work out where they can find the most food.
Researchers found that giraffes are capable of mentally adding quantities together, allowing them to identify which food source offers the biggest reward. The findings suggest the animals possess more advanced cognitive abilities than previously believed.
The study, published in Scientific Reports, involved four adult giraffes at Barcelona Zoo. Researchers presented the animals with two containers holding different numbers of carrots before briefly showing them another container with additional carrots.
The extra carrots were secretly added to one of the original containers after it was closed, meaning the giraffes had to mentally calculate which container now held the larger amount without seeing the final result.
Two of the four giraffes consistently chose the container with more carrots, demonstrating they could remember the original quantities, mentally update the numbers and make decisions based on simple addition.
Researchers also tested the animals using subtraction tasks by removing carrots from one container. However, none of the giraffes consistently solved the subtraction challenges, suggesting addition was significantly easier than subtraction.
Lead researchers said the results mirror what is commonly seen in humans, where subtraction generally requires more complex mental processing than addition.
The team believes these numerical skills may have evolved because giraffes live in constantly changing environments, where food sources such as acacia trees are scattered across vast savannas. Being able to estimate where the largest food supply is could help them forage more efficiently.
The researchers noted that giraffes also live in dynamic social groups that frequently split up and reunite, making strong memory and decision-making skills even more valuable for survival.
The study adds to growing evidence that advanced cognitive abilities are not limited to primates. Previous research has shown that chimpanzees, African grey parrots, crows, pigeons, monkeys, certain fish and even bees can perform basic mathematical tasks.
Scientists say the latest findings further demonstrate that complex numerical reasoning has evolved across a wide range of animal species, shaped by the unique environmental and social challenges they face.
