Why? What is being proved, unless we talk about majority? So we are able to find some animals that are monogamous and not violent? What then?
Like in the article, tossing "plenty" and "many" actually doesn't help for anything more than creating illusion that the behavior we like is somehow "supported" by nature.
It's not problem analyzing some behavior, the problem is unsupported "plenty" and "many."
That said, this whole thread is nothing but people trying to anthropomorphize nature, so that they can pretend it's more cuddly than it actually is. There is no chemical for morality secreted by all species. There is no evolution for empathy. These are things humans create through their own intelligence, and no amount of anthropomorophized behavior will make that not the case.
And then we come to our nearest relatives (bonobos, chimps) being both promiscuous and ready to jump on the same sex and to use that behavior as a bonding ritual.
> people trying to anthropomorphize nature, so that they can pretend it's more cuddly than it actually is
Exactly, Disney would certainly not approve Fark squirrel:
They also commit cannibalism, rape, murder, bullying. You can't get any morality or moral arguments out of nature.
Specifically, you can't use pure existence of some acts in the nature as an excuse or confirmation for validity of any human acts.
Still studying the nature and the dynamics of living beings can actually help us humans more understanding our own actions, it gives us a good context as we're also animals, even if that thought isn't pleasing to everybody.
You’re presupposing a specific morality, and then rejecting other forms of morality on that basis. Alternatives are going to by definition be different. So, you need another way to judge them.
Think of it in these terms, if one species of poisonous animal is brightly colored that says little. If several are brightly colored that's more significant.
Edit: In math you only need one counter example to disprove a theory. In science a few is generally enough.
Remember this is not a popularity contest and there are a lot of species out there. Why does behavior X happen is not asking what happens the other 99.99% of the time.