[Maitereya]

definitely. maybe even more so than humanity. i always thought whales and elephants were higher on the thought scale than humans. they just dont have little fingers to write and do complex tasks.

im sure some have less of a though process like some bugs or reptiles/amphibians.

people try to communicate with the other animals, coco the ape learned sign language. i know they were doing experiments with dolphins to learn their language, its more complex than scientists can understand.

as for whats next, i would say stop killing them and destroying their habitat so every creature can evolve and learn from one another.