Cockatoos understand when a job requires a toolkit

1 year ago 87

Goffin’s cockatoos cognize erstwhile they request to bring much than 1 instrumentality to retrieve immoderate nutrient – thing lone chimpanzees person demonstrated earlier among non-human animals

Life 10 February 2023

By Clare Wilson

Cockatoos tin recognize that they request to bring a two-piece “toolkit” to retrieve a cashew seed treat.

This makes them lone the 2nd non-human animal, aft chimpanzees, that seems to presumption aggregate tools arsenic being portion of a acceptable needed to execute a azygous goal.

Goffin’s cockatoos (Cacatua goffiniana) are small, achromatic parrots from Indonesia. In captivity, the birds person been seen utilizing 3 human-made tools to retrieve seeds from wrong a effect stone: 1 for cutting the stone, a sturdier instrumentality for wedging unfastened a ace and a 3rd 1 for scooping retired the seeds.

But it was unclear if the birds recognize that each 3 items are portion of a acceptable oregon if they conscionable utilized each instrumentality successful crook arsenic the request arose, says Antonio Osuna-Mascaró astatine the University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna successful Austria.

Osuna-Mascaró’s squad presented cockatoos with a cashew nut, held successful a container down a transparent cover. To get it, the birds archetypal had to usage a short, pointed instrumentality to puncture the cover, past usage a longer straw to retrieve the nut. Seven retired of 10 birds worked retired however to bash this.

But did the birds spot the 2 items arsenic portion of a set? To find out, 5 of the palmy birds were tested again. This time, the squad placed the container higher up than the offered tools, truthful the cockatoos had to marque a abbreviated but arduous vertical formation to transport them. Four of the birds learned to instrumentality the 2 tools to the container successful 1 trip.

“They are utilizing the tools arsenic thing much than the sum of their parts,” says Osuna-Mascaró. “Many animals usage tools, but they usage them successful a rigid mode depending connected their innate behaviours. Other animals are capable to usage tools successful flexible ways to lick caller problems.”

Some chimps are besides capable to usage aggregate tools. When “fishing” for termites in the insects’ ample mounds, they usage a short, rigid instrumentality to marque a spread successful the nest, past propulsion a long, flexible instrumentality into the mound, which the termites wound onto. Chimps besides bring some kinds of instrumentality to the termite mounds, erstwhile needed.

“We cognize that encephalon size is not a bully indicator of intelligence,” says Alex Kacelnik astatine the University of Oxford. “The Goffin’s cockatoos are astir apt not unsocial [among birds] – it’s simply that they person been studied.”

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