Coyotes and Badgers

Often, translation is about the need or desire to cooperate. For example, businesses in different countries want to work together, but they do not have a common language, so they will use a translation service to help them to communicate effectively with one another.

Cooperation, often across what initially look like insuperable barriers, is what makes the world go round.

Consider the example of coyotes and badgers. These animals, both native to parts of the United States such as the Santa Cruz mountains in California, are known to hunt cooperatively. This interesting behaviour is referenced in Native American mythology and has also been studied by zoologists.

Typically, one coyote and one badger will team up to hunt ground-dwelling animals that both like to eat. Their vastly different hunting styles are complementary, so by working together, each is likely to do better than it would on its own, or with a companion from the same species. Coyotes can run faster than badgers, and badgers are much better at digging than coyotes. The coyote can effectively chase a small animal underground, and the badger can dig it out. Everyone is happy (except, of course, for the small animal).

Video footage of these animals cooperating also shows them communicating with body language in ways that indicate feelings of camaraderie and playfulness. While their modes of communicating are less complex than ours, these intelligent mammals still get their message across.

Photo Source: https://unsplash.com/photos/a-raccoon-sitting-in-the-grass-looking-up-rH3Ecv0V3rU