Why Help? The Story of the Babblers

It's always tempting to ascribe human qualities to members of the animal kingdom. Filmmaker Arnon Dattner's Why Help? The Story of the Babblers certainly suggests that Arabian babblers—birds filmed here in an Israeli desert—are models of altruism. After all, they are extremely close and collaborative, literally stumbling over one another in an earnest effort to stay huddled for warmth. Individuals fight hard for food (usually grubs) but then give it to another adult or feed it to some other babbler's offspring. Male babblers volunteer to keep watch from the tallest trees, guarding against predator attacks while other babblers forage. It appears that babblers represent an ideal within nature of selflessness. But is that really the case? Why Help? examines the deeper motives within this avian society, drawing on the work of longtime researcher Professor Amotz Zahevi, who explains that altruism among babblers is an effective way to maintain hierarchy in lieu of fighting, since fighting would not be in the collective interest. When we observe one babbler give his grub to another male babbler, what's really going on is that the giver happens to be ranked above the recipient and is underscoring his superiority through sharing rather than defending his place (the lower-ranked bird would never offer food to one above him, as this would be tantamount to rebellion). Similarly, the babbler who sits in a tree and keeps watch for danger is maintaining his position over the rest; if a higher-ranked bird wants the job instead, the original guard will move on. The amazing camerawork here crawls into tight spaces to witness nest activity, captures fights between rival groups, and observes babblers ganging up on a snake. A fascinating and insightful documentary that will make viewers think twice about how to interpret animal behavior, this is highly recommended. Aud: H, C, P. (T. Keogh)