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Things I learned about bird intelligence at a panel earlier today. I mean yesterday.
Well, by the definition, "'today' increments when I sleep", it was today.
Alex is an African Gray parrot. He can apparently generalize concepts, and understand how language relates to abstractions and generalizations. When he is given tests about how well he understands these concepts, he scores an 85% success rate.
The interesting part is the 15% that are marked wrong.
"Alex, give me the red metal key."
"Want nut."
(mark that response wrong.)
"Alex, give me the red metal key."
"Want nut. Want pasta."
(mark that response wrong.)
"Alex, give me the red metal key."
Alex turns his back on the researcher and shits.
(mark that response wrong.)
"Alex, give me the red metal key."
Alex walks over and picks up and carries over every single object on the tray EXCEPT the red metal key and places them in front of the researcher.
(mark that response wrong)
Yeah. He didn't give the response that would count as being marked "right", but it's hard to argue that he doesn't understand what's going on . . .
He's not the only parrot in the lab, although he's the oldest and has been there the longest. He and the second-longest-tenured parrot will correct the pronounciation of English words of all the other parrots.
Alex makes up new words. He likes bananas and cherries. He was given an apple once, and apparently decided he liked it, because he asked the researchers for another "banary."
Other African grays show similar levels of intelligence. One parrot, who was typically only given orange juice in the morning, asked at dinner time for "breakfast-water."
Another African gray parrot owner was watching a documentary about Alex, with her parrot, Macguyver. Macguyver turned to her and said, "Poopy on Alex. Macguyver is a good bird."
Cockatoos are not at all as skilled at mimicing human speech as parrots are, and are probably not as intelligent. Nonetheless, there are flocks of wild cockatoos that have taken to sitting around outside cafes in Australia, waiting for there to be a good number of customers sitting around, and then mimicing various cell phone rings, just to watch all the humans go diving for their bags and digging through them. These are WILD cockatoos, mind you.
Alex is an African Gray parrot. He can apparently generalize concepts, and understand how language relates to abstractions and generalizations. When he is given tests about how well he understands these concepts, he scores an 85% success rate.
The interesting part is the 15% that are marked wrong.
"Alex, give me the red metal key."
"Want nut."
(mark that response wrong.)
"Alex, give me the red metal key."
"Want nut. Want pasta."
(mark that response wrong.)
"Alex, give me the red metal key."
Alex turns his back on the researcher and shits.
(mark that response wrong.)
"Alex, give me the red metal key."
Alex walks over and picks up and carries over every single object on the tray EXCEPT the red metal key and places them in front of the researcher.
(mark that response wrong)
Yeah. He didn't give the response that would count as being marked "right", but it's hard to argue that he doesn't understand what's going on . . .
He's not the only parrot in the lab, although he's the oldest and has been there the longest. He and the second-longest-tenured parrot will correct the pronounciation of English words of all the other parrots.
Alex makes up new words. He likes bananas and cherries. He was given an apple once, and apparently decided he liked it, because he asked the researchers for another "banary."
Other African grays show similar levels of intelligence. One parrot, who was typically only given orange juice in the morning, asked at dinner time for "breakfast-water."
Another African gray parrot owner was watching a documentary about Alex, with her parrot, Macguyver. Macguyver turned to her and said, "Poopy on Alex. Macguyver is a good bird."
Cockatoos are not at all as skilled at mimicing human speech as parrots are, and are probably not as intelligent. Nonetheless, there are flocks of wild cockatoos that have taken to sitting around outside cafes in Australia, waiting for there to be a good number of customers sitting around, and then mimicing various cell phone rings, just to watch all the humans go diving for their bags and digging through them. These are WILD cockatoos, mind you.
no subject
This was a very loud process. And, according to local ordinances, they couldn't do loud processes like this before 8 AM. So my parents complained, and the bank promised to look into it, and move their trash pickup later in the day.
My parents complained again, and the bank said that they'd made all appropriate changes and that they'd rescheduled the garbage pickup.
Much confusion ensued over the next several days.
Eventually, it was determined what had happened.
A local mockingbird had decided that "BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP *rumble rumble rumblecrash* *dumpster sounds*" was a REALLY COOL call, and was using it.
Re:
I'm totally willing to believe that the cockatoos are using the sound to make humans do silly things. Humans form a really large part of the environment for most animals; it would be silly to expect them to be oblivious to our antics or uninterested, and anyone who thinks animals don't have a sense of humor - or something that functions much the same way - has never lived with (and paid attention to) a cat or a dog, let alone spent time with, say, dolphins.
(A friend of mine doing work with dolphins in Hawaii got unmistakably propositioned by a male, one day. There wasn't a female dolphin anywhere in the area, and the signs were, um, very unambiguous. I doubt he really wanted her though...I think he just wanted to make her blush.) :)
Re:
Dolphins have been known to - "proposition" female trainers very directly, sometimes to the point of injuring them with attempts at mating. One would assume that they know damn well that the humans aren't dolphins... so is this an example of bestiality in another species?? ;]