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Scientists: Crows Have Natural Tool-Making Ability
Reuters ^ | Wed, Jan 12, 2005

Posted on 01/12/2005 10:47:36 AM PST by presidio9

Birds may not be renowned for their intelligence but New Caledonian crows have an instinctive ability to make and use tools, researchers said on Wednesday.

They bred four crows in captivity and found all the birds were able to make tools from twigs without being taught.

"We show that hand-raised juvenile New Caledonian crows spontaneously manufacture and use tools, without any contact with adults of their species or any prior demonstration by humans," said Alex Kacelnick, of Oxford University in England.

The crows -- three males and one female -- were raised in artificial nests and then transferred to aviaries that contained a variety of twigs and food hidden in crevices.

Two of the birds were shown by their human foster parents how to pry food out of tiny spaces with the twigs but the other birds were not.

"All four crows developed the ability to use twig tools," Kacelnick and his colleagues said in a report in the science journal Nature.

The tutored birds watched the tool demonstrations but the scientists found no difference in their skills and those of the other two birds.

"In light of our findings, it is possible that the high level of skill observed in wild adult crows is not socially acquired," said Kacelnick.

He and his team believe the crows could be a good example to study the interaction between inherited traits and social learning during the development of tool technology.


TOPICS: Culture/Society
KEYWORDS: animalrights; animalsarepeopletoo; castingporosity; crevolist; environment; morosity; nevermore; sherylcrow
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1 posted on 01/12/2005 10:47:37 AM PST by presidio9
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To: presidio9

Crows are damn smart. When I was a kid, I used to try to shoot them in my backyard with a cheap crossman pellet gun. After one or two shots, they knew exactly which tree line they could sit in without being hit... and they would sit there and sit there squawking at me. So, I saved up a few weeks of paper route money and bought a really powerful pellet gun, and nailed two of them when I got home. That pushed them back another 50 yards or so.


2 posted on 01/12/2005 10:50:03 AM PST by Rodney King (No, we can't all just get along.)
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To: presidio9

They now have something to crow about......


3 posted on 01/12/2005 10:50:06 AM PST by Red Badger (And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you FReep!........)
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To: Rodney King

When I was growing up there was an old man in my neighborhood who had had a pet crow for fourty years (like Brooks in Shawshank Redemption). He had taught the bird to talk like a parrot.


4 posted on 01/12/2005 10:52:16 AM PST by presidio9 (Islam is as Islam does)
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To: presidio9

Ah, life before ESPN.


5 posted on 01/12/2005 10:59:22 AM PST by Fierce Allegiance (MY COUSIN GREG IS HOME SAFE FROM IRAQ!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!)
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To: presidio9

6 posted on 01/12/2005 10:59:55 AM PST by robertpaulsen
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To: Fierce Allegiance

Actually, there is something inherently creepy about a talking crow...


7 posted on 01/12/2005 11:05:16 AM PST by presidio9 (Islam is as Islam does)
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To: presidio9

I would not argue that a bit. I had a friend who had an Alaskan Malamute named Budweiser who would say "I love you" and "I want yogurt" clear as a bell. . It wasn't as if it just said it, this dog would say I love you right after a good ear-scratch and the yogurt thing with his dinner. The dog really liked yogurt too.

Maybe not as creepy as acrow, but weird nonetheless.

Oh, it could descern between Bud and Bud Light when fetching beers.


8 posted on 01/12/2005 11:10:02 AM PST by Fierce Allegiance (MY COUSIN GREG IS HOME SAFE FROM IRAQ!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!)
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To: presidio9

Nevermore!


9 posted on 01/12/2005 11:14:11 AM PST by ArrogantBustard (Western Civilisation is Aborting, Buggering, and Contracepting itself out of existence.)
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To: Fierce Allegiance

This thing could answer questions. If you asked who was the best baseball player, it said "Babe Ruth!" and so forth.


10 posted on 01/12/2005 11:17:01 AM PST by presidio9 (Islam is as Islam does)
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To: presidio9

They still aren't smart enough to figure out that the Aluminum foil is on the bottom of the cake tray and not the top...bang...bang...bang...


11 posted on 01/12/2005 11:18:03 AM PST by MD_Willington_1976
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To: presidio9; Constitution Day; martin_fierro; TheBigB

Hey... presidio's ranting and raven over here.


12 posted on 01/12/2005 11:18:26 AM PST by Tijeras_Slim
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To: presidio9

13 posted on 01/12/2005 11:18:49 AM PST by PilloryHillary
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To: Fierce Allegiance
Oh, it could descern between Bud and Bud Light when fetching beers.

Get me a puppy from this dog's bloodline please.

14 posted on 01/12/2005 11:19:29 AM PST by thoughtomator (Rooting for a Jets-Vikings Superbowl!)
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To: presidio9
This story doesn't surprise me at all. Ravens, which look similar to crows and are probably from the same bird family, have always been considered among the smartest creatures in the animal world. I read an article about them a couple of years ago that was totally fascinating. The most amazing thing about them is their apparent ability to understand cause/effect relationships for a series of events.

The article or one of the follow-up letters contained a description of one raven that would sit in an oak tree along a busy road, dropping acorns down on the road in the hopes that a squirrel would get run over by a car while gathering them. The raven would then feed on the carcasses of these dead squirrels.

15 posted on 01/12/2005 11:23:14 AM PST by Alberta's Child (It could be worse . . . I could've missed my calling.)
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To: Tijeras_Slim

Happy to be back for the time being. The last infraction was really bush-league. But that's why I contribute nothing to FR.


16 posted on 01/12/2005 11:24:17 AM PST by presidio9 (Islam is as Islam does)
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To: presidio9

We'd prefer you stuck around. (Speaking for the other smarta$$es here.)


17 posted on 01/12/2005 11:26:36 AM PST by Tijeras_Slim
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To: Tijeras_Slim; martin_fierro
Hey... presidio's ranting and raven over here.

Good thing.
Not so long ago, I thought he would be Posting Nevermore.

18 posted on 01/12/2005 11:28:34 AM PST by Constitution Day (Literary, literary. I know.)
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To: presidio9

Har. I meant to ping you to #18.


19 posted on 01/12/2005 11:29:15 AM PST by Constitution Day (Poopachoopa Boogyboo!!)
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To: Tijeras_Slim; presidio9

I concur!


20 posted on 01/12/2005 11:29:35 AM PST by Fierce Allegiance (MY COUSIN GREG IS HOME SAFE FROM IRAQ!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!)
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