An article by Elizabeth Landau reports an interview with animal behaviorist Frans de Waal. Waal gives insight on the behavior of animals, especially chimpanzees, who seem to behave and interact with one another with moral codes. The article opens by belittling the ego of humans, and states that morality is not simply a human characteristic, but rather, a basic instinct formed by evolution. The article goes on to show examples of how animals who live in herds, or packs, have developed empathies and emotions toward one another. The article tells that these animals have, like humans, evolved to take care of one another for the purpose of survival. Like a mothering instinct, animals have developed sentiments towards on another. The article refers to the expertise of Waal to help support the argument that moral codes are not a divine characteristic of human beings as many may think, but that caring for one another is actually one of the most basic of animal instincts which can be found in many different species of living things.
http://www.cnn.com/2013/01/19/health/chimpanzee-fairness-morality/index.html?hpt=he_t2
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