Parrots’ Amazing Cognitive Abilities
The intelligence of birds is well known in corvids, but in the world of parrots (parrots, macaws and parakeets), many species also stand out because of their amazing cognitive abilities.
Parrots’ intelligence level is comparable, in many cases, to that of primates, although their cognitive abilities are inferior to those of them and two-year-olds. By presenting the same tests to parrots, primates, monkeys and young children, these winged animals performed better than monkeys and comparable to that of chimpanzees.
Parrots are able to solve problems
Logical or causal reasoning is the ability to solve problems, draw conclusions and learn from facts, establishing cause and effect relationships between them. There are many ways to measure this kind of reasoning in animals: in the case of comparative studies between parrots, monkeys and primates, a whole battery of tests was necessary.
Some of the tests in which the parrots excelled in various experiments were: choosing between several threads and pulling the thread that gave a reward, using tools or hitting the cup game. That is, tests in which it is necessary to establish the learning of cause and effect in order to obtain a reward.
Parrots’ Brain Explains Their Cognitive Skills
Parrots, like primates, have a highly developed region connecting the cortex and cerebellum. In birds, this region is called the medial spiriform nucleus, and in parrots this area is two to five times larger than in other birds, although their brain is not very large.
The neural pathways connecting the cortex to the cerebellum are believed to play an important role in controlling complex behaviors, and here may be the answer to the amazing cognitive abilities of parrots.
Do parrots understand what they say?
Thanks to the syrinx, these birds can imitate human sounds, words and voices. However, do they understand what they are saying or is it just an imitation? With new discoveries about the intelligence of these birds, imitation without learning is called into question. Can parrots learn sounds and use them based on some criteria?
In the wild, parrots live in social groups and communicate through different sounds. Each group (and even each breeding couple) has its own very different dialect and a complete record of calls with very subtle modifications for each situation.
The most curious thing is that these calls are learned, that is, they are not innate for the puppies. Thus, if we exchange one nest for another, the chicks will learn the “speech” of their adoptive parents. Parrots also recognize each other through the association of certain sounds, as if each individual had a first and last name.
This ability to use sounds, along with their intelligence, shows that parrots have amazing cognitive abilities.
Alex the gray parrot
The gray Alex parrot case is a great example to admire the incredible abilities of parrots. He was trained by his tutor, psychologist Irene Pepperberg, for 30 years. Over these years, Alex has learned 100 different words, distinguishing colors, shapes, materials and quantities from one to six.
The intelligence of this particular parrot was comparable to that of a five-year-old child. Alex’s training consisted of numerous repetitions and associations, thanks to which he was able to identify the shape, material and color of an object being shown.
We still have a lot to learn about animal intelligence and all the secrets it contains. However, one thing seems clear: there are many species with amazing reasoning abilities, so treating them with integrity and respect is essential.
