Higher animals are capable of higher levels of abstraction that determine a level of mathematical processing that the organism is capable of. At a low level the nervous system develops proportionate responses. If a prey is moving fast one strikes fast and in a direction and with a speed determined by the motion of the prey. At a higher level there is pursuit. One may not be able to capture the prey in a single swift blow but one follows it waiting for an opportunity.
Pursuit provides the opportunity for more subtle strategies such as subterfuge and tiring the prey.
Most importantly it opens the door to cooperation. Survival, by itself, is not enough. If the planet was smaller with less diverse climate then perhaps the development of anything approaching the human mind would be unlikely. In Chapter I described how the mathematics of the completed infinite might be interpreted as the mathematics of creativity. I believe this is possible and will happen in time.