MUNICH: Cockatoos are more intelligent than infant parrots,
capable of opening litter boxes and teaching each other the process, a new
study has revealed.
In a study conducted at the Max Planck Institute, scientists
said that cockatoos, found in the suburbs of Sydney, have the ability to remove
the lid of a garbage can and regularly teach it to their peers.
Dr. Barbara Klump, a scientist at the Max Planck Institute
of Animal Behavior and lead author of the study, said that when she first saw
the video of the cockatoos opening the trash can, she was intrigued. This was a
unique behavior that needed to be observed.
Impressed by the intelligence of parrots, German researchers
studied how many parrots had learned this process. In this regard, teams were
sent to three suburbs to monitor 44 parrots.
This type of parrot is known for its intelligence and it has
been observed in various studies that these parrots are more intelligent than
human babies.
After analyzing videos of 160 birds lifting trash can lids
and examining the geographic distribution of the practice, Dr. Barbara Klump
and her colleagues realized that most had learned the technique by watching
others.
It is no less a feat for the birds to do this, they grab the
lid of the box with their beaks and try to open it with their claws. Then they
lift the lid and drop it back, revealing the food inside. Cockatoos do this
with food in the box.
