[ikka]

But Betty's older male lab-mate Abel had a more direct route of securing his meals -- he would snatch the wire or steal the food from Betty. He was not tested to see if he could bend the wire.

Betty is a Republican. Abel is a Democrat. Clear enough?

[Bigg Red]

Pretty cool!

"What is more, she didn't do it the same way each time..."

Wow! She's already shown that she's smarter than Gore.

[Arthur Wildfire! March]

Flipper returns. Betty can be his tool-making side kick.

[mtngrl@vrwc]

She was able to repeat the skill nine times out of 10, using more than one technique.

I wonder what happened the one time out of ten? Why would she not repeat the skill that tenth time? Maybe she wasn't hungry?

[NewHampshireDuo]

Not even chimpanzees, our closest cousins, have this ability.

Save the crow, eat the chimp.

[KayEyeDoubleDee]

I don't believe it. Seriously, I really don't believe it.

[aristeides]

Aren't parrots supposed to be very smart too?

[TomServo]

Already posted here.

[LoneRangerMassachusetts]

The feat, it is said, makes her the first animal other than a human that has shown a clear understanding of cause and effect, and fashioned a tool for a specific task using new materials not encountered in the wild.

Smart birds is old news.

http://a1259.g.akamai.net/f/1259/5586/1d/images.art.com/images/PRODUCTS/shdws/large/10000000

[SSN558]

How about the crows that take walnuts up in the air and dive bomb them on hard pavement to get the goodies inside ? Might have figured they were smarter than chickens.

[Sunsong]

Very cool :-)

[Bullish]

Heck, my cat can open a can of cat food.

Er, well that's me.... But she makes me do it.

[Movemout]

"Not even chimpanzees, our closest cousins, have this ability. "

This statement is untrue. There is ample evidence that simians have used twigs to get access to anthills and their contents. Additional tests in labs have shown that chimps can think their way through problems, for example moving chairs or piling up items in order to reach fruit placed out of their reach.

I have been observing crow behavior for at least four decades. They are much smarter than people give them credit for. I can tell you some interesting crow stories but I won't bore you.