Nova Bird Brain Documentary

In the documentary "Bird Brain", researchers aim to answer numerous questions about the cognition and responses of birds. They test the intelligence of birds to see if they use things like basic instinct or develop social cues in which they replicate behaviors seen in other birds. Valerie Dufour, a researcher at the University of Strasbourg who focuses on comparing animal intelligence, tests this theory by experimenting with the rook, a member of the crow family. She uses a ball attached to a string positioned over a container filled with food. Birds are presented with the option to either push the ball into the container or pull the string to access the food directly. Through these experiments, it becomes evident that most birds learn from observing others, as they mimic the actions of their predecessors. This process is called social learning, and it is a highly advanced response. In 2009 zoologist Christopher Bird from the University of Cambridge also found that the rook was intelligent enough "...to reason through how to drop stones into a pitcher partly filled with water in order to raise the level high enough to drink from it."(Kluger).

Although some bird brains might be small, they still contain an executive part of the brain that allows the bird to make plans, organize strategies, and execute missions to obtain food. I was fascinated to learn that birds contain more neurons and cells than most other animals. "The number of neurons is a better indication of brain power than the physical size of the brain." (Marzluff, 13:49). John Marzluff a professor at the University of Washington has been studying these aspects and focusing on the way human interactions affect birds intelligence. Researcher Ludwig Huber also tested these theories at the Hattle Hough Research Station with a Kea Parrot from New Zealand, John. John is presented with two strings of which one holds a tube hidden with food and one with just a stick. The strings are then crossed to confuse the parrot into picking the wrong string. This new 'layer of processing' requires the bird to think ahead and plan how they will execute the task. The birds seemingly still choose the correct string every time. Overall, the intelligence of birds goes beyond the measure of these expirements. There is no way to measure the full capacity of how smart birds truly are. It's completely fascinating how adaptive and unique animals are. I am excited to keep furthering my research on these topics.