Pigcasso and Wrenoir

In animals as in people, courtship is a great inspiration, and a likely place to look for artistic inclination. Male bowerbirds, for example, build complicated structures called gessos to impress prospective mates. “They decorate them with piles of one-color things: little flowers, blue beetles’ wing cases, green fruit,” said Ashby. “The only purpose is to attract the mate, but it’s obviously very aesthetic.”

Wired has collected up some animal art today, much of it of the more obvious finger/beak/paw/trunk paint variety, and all of it rather impressive. What do you think: should nests be considered art?