I've pretty much always believed that EVERYTHING is conscious to some extent. Consciousness rising out of matter simply made no sense, whereas matter rising out of consciousness seemed perfectly logical. So, animal consciousness, even insects, was no stretch.

Mountains and Rivers endlessly walking ....

Consciousness, at least as we understand it in complex organisms, is an accident: it's what happens when you write up too many cells too much and they constantly talk to each other. It's "emergent" behavior.

Wait. *EVERYTHING* everything? Like… minerals? No. Animals, yes.