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March 30, 2012

Do Animals Commit Suicide?

Katharine Gammon, Life's Little Mysteries


AP Photo

At the end of the Oscar-winning documentary "The Cove," former dolphin trainer Ric O'Barry claims that a dolphin he worked with jumped out of the water and "committed suicide in my arms." Animals such as primates, dolphins and even squid have been shown to have self-awareness, but can they actually make a choice to kill themselves? Or is that particular trait reserved for humans?

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TAGGED: suicide, animals

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