It’s sometimes said that old friends are the best friends. In fact, our good friends are often just as important to us as our closest family ties.
Research shows that at least five types of animals form similar human-like friendships. Elephants, dolphins, higher primates and some carnivores all maintain long-lasting friendships within dynamic social settings. Surprisingly, bats were recently added to this list, too.
Some female bats favor certain companions in the colony. These bat friends roost together, groom each other, make group decisions and even help one another through trying times.
Scientists used to think that such camaraderie was found only in larger-brained critters like elephants and apes, not in tiny-brained creatures like bats. Which goes to show that even in the animal kingdom, brain size doesn’t equal heart size.