Wildlife May Have Sensed Impending Tsunami

Tsunamis Kill People In Sri Lanka, But Not Animals

YALA NATIONAL PARK, Sri Lanka -- Wildlife officials in Sri Lanka expressed surprise Wednesday that they found no evidence of large-scale animal deaths from the weekend's massive tsunami - indicating that animals may have sensed the wave coming and fled to higher ground.

An Associated Press photographer who flew over Sri Lanka's Yala National Park in an air force helicopter saw abundant wildlife, including elephants, buffalo, deer, and not a single animal corpse.

I find it amazing - the sensitivity level to danger - that helped preserve some of the region's wildlife. Observing wildlife, one can see the hyper-awareness that is instinctual to other animals.

I wish we had some way of detecting these cues - it is likely we did in our species' prehistory.