'Until the early nineties the mark-test was conducted almost exclusively on land animals. There'd been plenty of speculation about IQ in whales and dolphins, but proving their intelligence was never going to be popular with certain sectors of industry. Monkey meat appeals to only a small percentage of the world's population but whales and dolphins are sought after, and it never looks good for hunters when their prey turns out to be smart. When we started conducting mark-tests on dolphins we upset a lot of people. In the run-up to the experiments we lined the pool with reflective glass and added some mirrors, then marked the dolphins with a spot of black ink. They searched the walls until they located the mirrors – they had obviously realised that they'd be able to see the spot more clearly in the mirror than the clear glass. To make the test more rigorous, we didn't always use a real pen. Sometimes we used a water-filled marker. That way we could test whether or not the dolphins were just reacting to the sensation of the mark being made. The test results showed that the dolphins looked longer and harder at their reflections whenever the mark was visible.'
'Did you reward them for their behaviour?' asked a student.
'No, and we didn't train them. In fact, we even kept changing the location of the mark to make sure the results weren't skewed by learning or by habit-forming behaviours. A few weeks ago we began the trials again, this time with belugas. So far we've marked them six times, including twice with the placebo pen. You've seen for yourselves what happens. The whale approached the mirror and looked for the mark. When the mark wasn't there, it swam away. To me, that proves that belugas possess a degree of self-awareness on a par with chimpanzees. In some respects whales and humans may have more in common than we think.'
A student raised her hand. 'Can we tell from the experiment that dolphins and whales have minds then?'
'That's right.'
'Then where's the proof?'
Anawak was taken aback. 'I thought I'd explained that. Didn't you see what happened in the pool?'
'Sure. I saw a whale inspecting its mirror-image. The beluga knows who it is – but does that necessarily mean it's self-aware?'
'You've just answered the question. It knows who it is. It's aware of itself.'
'That's not what I meant.' She took a step forward. She had red hair, a small pointy nose and incisors that seemed too big for her mouth. 'The experiment looks for observational faculties and the ability of the whale to recognise its body. From what we've just seen, the beluga passed on both counts. But you still haven't proven that whales have any permanent sense of identity, and you can't jump to conclusions about their attitude to other living things.'
'I didn't.'
'You did. You cited Gallup's theory about certain animals being able to infer the mental state of others.'
'I said primates.'
'Well, that's pretty controversial in itself In any case, I didn't hear you qualify your statement in relation to dolphins or whales – or maybe I misheard you.'
'There's no need for me to qualify anything,' Anawak said peevishly. 'We've just proven that whales can recognise themselves.'
'That seems to be what the experiment indicates, yes.'
'Then what are you trying to say?'
Her eyes widened. 'It's obvious, isn't it? I mean, you can see how a beluga responds, but there's no way of knowing what it's thinking. I've read Gallup's stuff too. He thinks he can prove that animals are sensitive to each other's mental states, but he relies on the assumption that animals think and feel as we do. You're trying to humanise whales.'
So that was her objection. Unbelievable. It was exactly what Anawak had always argued. 'Is that how it seemed to you?'
'Well you said so yourself "Whales have more in common with humans than we think."
'You should have paid more attention, Miss. . .'
'Delaware. Alicia Delaware.'
'Miss Delaware.' Anawak was back in control. 'I said, "Humans and whales may have more in common than we think."
'And the difference is?'
'In the perspective. It's not a question of finding parallels to prove that whales are like humans, or of using mankind as the template by which to judge whales. It's about finding fundamental similarities that-'
'But I don't think you can compare an animal's self-awareness with a human's. Even the basic stuff is so different. I mean, first of all humans have a permanent sense of identity, which allows them to-'
'Wrong,' Anawak interrupted her. 'Humans only develop a stable sense of self-awareness under specific sets of circumstances. Research shows that infants first start to recognise themselves in a mirror between the ages of eighteen and twenty-four months. Until then they're unable to conceptualise the self. In fact, they're even less self-aware than the whale we just observed. And stop referring back to Gallup. My aim is to try to understand the whales. What's yours?'
'I was only trying to-'
'Well, before you try anything else, may be you should imagine how a beluga might judge you. I mean, what's a whale going to think if it sees you looking in the mirror painting your face? Oh, it'll realise you've identified the person in the mirror, sure, but it won't find much evidence of intelligent behaviour. Come to think of it, if it doesn't like your makeup, it might even wonder if you're really self-aware. It's bound to question your IQ.'
Alicia Delaware went red. She started to answer, but Anawak cut her off. 'Needless to say, these tests are just a start,' he said. 'In any case, no one seriously involved in studying whales and dolphins wants to bring back the old myth of man's aquatic friend with the winning smile. I don't suppose whales and dolphins are especially interested in humans, particularly since they inhabit a different environment. They've got different needs from us and they've evolved differently. But if our research can persuade people to respect and protect them, it's worth the effort.'
He answered a few more questions, and finally said goodbye to the group. He waited until they were out of sight, then reviewed the trial with his research team and arranged the dates and procedures for the remaining tests. When everyone had gone, he walked to the edge of the pool, took a deep breath and tried to relax.
PR wasn't one of his strengths, but he had to learn to deal with it. His career was on track, and he'd made his reputation as a brilliant young scientist. No doubt he'd be dragged into countless more arguments with the Alicia Delawares of this world, kids fresh out of university who were so immersed in their textbooks that they'd never even touched the sea.
He crouched and dabbled his fingers in the cool water of the belugas' pool. It was still early. They always tried to conduct tests or demonstrations either before the aquarium opened or when it was closed in the evening. After the long stretch of rain, March was redeeming itself, and the morning sunshine felt pleasantly warm on his skin.
She'd said he treated whales like humans. The accusation had hit home. Anawak prided himself on his sober approach to science. In fact, he led his whole life soberly. He didn't drink and he never went to parties. His research was based on rigour, not attention-seeking theories. He was an atheist, who detested new-age spirituality and avoided projecting human values on animals. Dolphins in particular had become the focus of a romantic way of thinking that was almost as dangerous as hatred or contempt. People tended to view them as a superior species, clinging to them as though their supposed goodness would somehow rub off. The ignorance that exposed dolphins to horrendous cruelty also led to their unqualified idealisation. Humans either tortured or loved them to death.