Brainy Birds Use Tools in Different Ways (Video)

Scientists have been testing out the problem solving skills of members of two of the smartest bird families—crows and parrots—with fascinating results.
Brainy Birds Use Tools in Different Ways (Video)
The New Caledonian crow Uek uses the window entrance at the Multi Access Box. Alice Auersperg
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Smart Birds Solve Puzzles Differently

Scientists have been testing out the problem solving skills of members of two of the smartest bird families—crows and parrots—with fascinating results.

Researchers at the University of Vienna in conjunction with the University of Oxford studied the New Caledonian crow, and the kea, a New Zealand parrot.

The New Caledonian crow, found in islands in the southwest Pacific, makes tools out of sticks and leaves in nature when exploring the forest.

“It shows great innovative skills when it comes to technical problems involving tool use,” says study author Ludwig Huber, head of the Department of Cognitive Biology in Vienna, in a press release.

Kea, though not having been documented as using tools in the wild, are likewise known for their intelligence.

<a href="https://www.theepochtimes.com/assets/uploads/2015/07/33059_web_medium.jpg"><img class="size-medium wp-image-127158" title="This is the parrot Kea using a ball shaped tool at the Multi Access Box.  (Alice Auersperg)" src="https://www.theepochtimes.com/assets/uploads/2015/07/33059_web_medium.jpg" alt="This is the parrot Kea using a ball shaped tool at the Multi Access Box.  (Alice Auersperg)" width="320"/></a>
This is the parrot Kea using a ball shaped tool at the Multi Access Box.  (Alice Auersperg)