How about an animal version of COMMON SENSE? Unlike the humans, the animals didn't stand around at the beach watching the waves come in. At the first hint that something was amiss they ran.
I've read that before a tidal wave hits, the water along the shore drops significantly. It happened decades ago in Alaska, but there teachers brought schoolkids to the beach so they could see the exposed sea bottom and stranded fish. Some folks even walked out to gather fish. Then, seemingly out of nowhere, a massive wave hits and many people are killed.
I don't want to sound callous but if I lived along a shoreline, especially on a low lying island, I'd be danged sure to make myself familiar with the tides and waves and the possibility of tsunami.
Kinda like knowing how to hunker down in a spring or winter storm or hurricane. Or what to do when conditions are favorable for a tornado.
It's my opinion lots of these people had >some< advance warning but instead of preparing for it, they vastly understimated what was going to happen and hung around to see the waves come in. Tourists excepted ...sorta.
Might be nothing more than population dynamics. People crowd the coastal areas. Animal habitat is farther inland. I don't know anything about the parks in question, but it's possible that pattern is repeated there... more human presence on the side of the park closest to the coast.
Animals die in forest fires, which are much more prevalent than earthquakes or tsunamis... why doesn't their "sixth sense" help them in fires?
And how does "running for higher ground" help you during an earthquake? That's only true in coastal areas... when the earthquake is out at sea.
What's the evolutionary scenario for selecting for this behavior? Writing such a "just so story" would really be a stretch. Unless you're dealing with those very few species who evolved specifically for a coastal habitat, I'm skeptical about the existence of any selective pressure to develop a behavior trait that says: "When the ground shakes, head for the hills."
Freggin` animals, they knew all along and they didn`t tell ANYBODY!!! That gets me so mad! They are soooo selfish, it`s always about them them them. I mean all that had to do was tell one officer about the coming tsunami and 10`s of thousands of lives could have been saved, but noooooooo...They split town and don`t tell anybody. Freggin` bums, all they ever do is eat eat eat eat. Everytime I see an animal they are either eating or looking for something to eat, and the only animals I ever see working are horses! What about deer? I`ve never seen a deer with a job ever! How do they pay the rent? They are all welfare leeches and live off the taxpayer dollar yet when those taxpayers are in danger what do they do? They don`t even have the decency to inform them. It`s all about give me food and screw you pal. Everytime I see a deer they don`t even have the decency to look me in the eye when I talk to them, they say screw you and they run away to get food. Ohh this gets me so mad! I`m glad Ted Nugent don`t take no BS from them at all! He shoots them with an arrow and eats them.
Whay the heck is this such a big deal?? Do journalists really know that little about animals? Yes, animals generally escape forest fires, hurricanes and evidently tsunamis. What non-news.
having lived thru' many california earthquakes, some large, some small, i noticed on each occasion that animals around me were alert to the quake before myself.
for example, the norwalk quake, not as big as the later ones, but big:
i was eating a bagel outside a bagel shop next to albertsons, waiting for a co-worker to pick me up to go work on a project.
all of a sudden the crows and black birds took to the sky.
a few moments later, the quake started, and i wanted to get away from the roof line, so i walked across the parking lot--it was difficult:
the asphalt was moving in waves like water. i had trouble keeping my balance until the end of the quake.
This is good. Those people are going to need fresh meat!