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How Smart Is a Bird?

JewelFreak

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Joined
Sep 3, 2009
Messages
7,768
This is incredible, my jaw dropped. It's one thing to use a tool, totally another to fashion one that will do the job.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5OiySjrTBkk

Easiest to see what's going on if you watch it "full screen."

--- Laurie
 

tyty333

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Dec 17, 2008
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27,198
OMG that is amazing!
 

minmin001

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Mar 21, 2011
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kenny is gonna have some fun with his birdy~ :bigsmile:
 

sonnyjane

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Jul 13, 2008
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Well, as a professional bird trainer, I have to say they are pretty darn smart! Corvids (crows/ravens) are ingenious tool users! We have to work really hard to keep them stimulated with puzzles and toys. The smartest bird I've ever worked with is a parrot called a kea from New Zealand. We have two right now and they are a handful. They learn things that would take most animals weeks in just seconds, and can learn from watching each other! I've worked with dolphins in the past and keas put dolphins to shame.
 

junebug17

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Jun 17, 2009
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Holy Moley, that's amazing!! :appl: I never realized birds were so smart! I really enjoyed that jewelfreak, I just love animals and am always fascinated by what they can do- thank you for posting it!
 

manderz

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Mar 8, 2010
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1,539
They are amazingly intelligent. Some birds are capable of a 75+ word vocabulary as well. Once, I watched a crow open a dumpster, grab a piece of food, and carefully let the lid close so he and his prize were safe.
 

maplefemme

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May 12, 2011
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That's Betty! My friend worked with her, she's super smart. I love corvids, my favorite birds :appl:
 

kenny

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Apr 30, 2005
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33,227
Here is a presenter at that TED conference who researches these birds.

At 2:45 of this 10-minute video he explains JewelFreak's video of the bird, which the researchers named Betty.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NhmZBMuZ6vE
 

smitcompton

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Feb 11, 2006
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3,254
Hi,

I saw that nature show on PBS this past Sunday. I kept talking to the TV saying yes I knew that, well not exactly that, but close.

My son has brought 3 cats into my home within the last 5 yrs. Before that I was animal neutral. Never wanted any. However. since I now can see them up close and personal I have decidedly formed some opinions on animals in general.
Much, much smarter than I ever heard.

Our cats do chase birds and rabbits in our garden. On day Lucky(male cat) sot of caught a bird. When my son saw this he tried to free the bird. The bird flew away, then fell, and hobbled over near the back fence under several trees. I was watching from the patio door. My cat crept up on the struggling bird again. Suddenly, and this is the amazing part, birds swooped down from the trees and rested on my fence calling the cat to divert its attention from the stricken bird to allow it to escape. There were at least two species of birds, robins and i don't know the other, could be sparrows, that united and came to the rescue of the bird. The bird escaped and when it was safe the birds flew back up to the tree . I said to my son, "Did you see that?" He nodded and we agreed it was an amazing thing to see. It still blows my mind. Who said animals aren't smart. Two species of birds working together.

I am now sure animals feel so many of the things we feel, just to a different degree. I have learned so much!

Just my story.
Annette
 

junebug17

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Jun 17, 2009
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14,128
That's a great story Annette, just amazing that those birds knew to distract the cat like that- I'm with you, animals are so intelligent and it truly fascinates me to hear stories like this!
 
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