Watching wolves while yawning
By Los Angeles Times, adapted by Newsela staff on 09.07.14
Word Count 480
One of five wolf pups rescued from the edge of the Funny River wildfire in Alaska on May 27, 2014, is cared
for at the veterinary facility of the Alaska Zoo in Anchorage. Photo: AP Photo/Alaska Zoo, John Gomes
When someone near you yawns, you yawn too. So do chimpanzees and
baboons. Even dogs do it. They all seem to "catch" yawns. But why? Scientists
think it is a sign that these animals have empathy.
Empathy is when you feel what someone else is feeling. People who have a lot
of empathy are more likely to catch yawns. If you are around people you feel
close to, you are more likely to catch a yawn. The same goes for other primates,
like monkeys.
Dogs can also catch yawns. But they don’t yawn when other dogs do it. Instead,
they yawn when people yawn. Dogs yawn even more if they get along very well
with their owner.
Field Trip
Some scientists in Japan wanted to find out if dogs yawn because they spend
so much time near humans. They wanted to know if dogs were born knowing
how to yawn. The scientists thought the dogs might have learned by watching
humans.
Dogs are skilled at reading human behaviors, the scientists said. They
wondered if that skill caused them to yawn. They also wanted to know if any
other animals could catch a yawn, aside from apes and chimps of course.
To find out, the scientists decided to study how wolves yawn. Wolves are the
closest relative of dogs. If dogs were born knowing how to yawn, wolves might
be too.
So the scientists went to a zoo near Tokyo. In the zoo was a pack of 12 wolves.
There was a mother, a father and their 10 offspring. The scientists spent five
months watching the wolves. They paid attention to when they yawned.
Scientists only looked at certain wolf yawns. They were interested in yawns
when wolves were awake and relaxed. When they saw that kind of yawn, the
scientists wrote down which wolf did it. They also watched the other wolves
nearby to see if they were looking at the wolf who yawned.
Yawning Wolves
After one wolf yawned, the scientists then watched the nearby wolves for the
next three minutes. They wanted to see if any of them yawned. If they did, they
wrote down the time between the first yawn and the next yawn.
The scientists also watched the wolves when no yawning happened. They
wanted to see if the wolves yawned just anytime.
The scientists found that one wolf yawning could make another wolf yawn. But it
happened more often if the two animals were friends. If wolves could see the
yawns, they were more likely to yawn.
The scientists think that makes sense. Yawning together makes the wolves feel
more connected. It helps them get along as a pack.
Wolves often caught yawns from wolves they were friendly with. They caught
them less often from wolves that were not their friends. The scientists think that
proves the wolves feel empathy. They want to study if other animals do also.
Quiz
1
2
3
4
Yawns are most likely to spread among wolves when:
(A)
they are happy
(B)
they are friends
(C)
they are relaxed
(D)
they are in a group
Based on the article, which of the following about dogs is NOT CORRECT?
(A)
They can also "catch" yawns.
(B)
They are able to read human behavior.
(C)
They yawn easily when other dogs yawn.
(D)
They get along very well with their owner.
Which sentence from the article supports the main idea?
(A)
People who feel a lot of empathy are more likely to catch yawns.
(B)
They wanted to know if dogs were born knowing how to yawn.
(C)
The scientists found that one wolf yawning could make another wolf
yawn.
(D)
Yawning helps the wolves get along as a pack.
Select the paragraph from the section "Yawning Wolves" that BEST describes what
the scientists learned from their study of the wolves.
Answer Key
1
2
3
4
Yawns are most likely to spread among wolves when:
(A)
they are happy
(B)
they are friends
(C)
they are relaxed
(D)
they are in a group
Based on the article, which of the following about dogs is NOT CORRECT?
(A)
They can also "catch" yawns.
(B)
They are able to read human behavior.
(C)
They yawn easily when other dogs yawn.
(D)
They get along very well with their owner.
Which sentence from the article supports the main idea?
(A)
People who feel a lot of empathy are more likely to catch yawns.
(B)
They wanted to know if dogs were born knowing how to yawn.
(C)
The scientists found that one wolf yawning could make another
wolf yawn.
(D)
Yawning helps the wolves get along as a pack.
Select the paragraph from the section "Yawning Wolves" that BEST describes what
the scientists learned from their study of the wolves.
Paragraph 10:
The scientists found that one wolf yawning could make another wolf
yawn. But it happened more often if the two animals were friends. If
wolves could see the yawns, they were more likely to yawn.