Who's smarter?

[henpecked]

So some one asked... is a CAG smarter than amazon ? (or a macaw,Cockatoo, what ever). I couldn't say, if i had as many CAGs as i do Zons ,i could.So how do you compare apples to oranges? Is there some kind of study that's been done? How can you rate intelligence ? I know my pet hen nape ,Jake, is smart enough that when she eats spaghetti , She won't bite that loop where she has it doubled over in her foot. She reaches down to the end and starts there. Having it in one peice means she won't drop any. That's pretty smart.

 

[Adinafloyd]

I think they are all smart just show it in different ways...they figure us out and have us jumping thru hoops before we even know what they are up too. little con artists...lol

 

[paulhanlon]

I agree they are all equil and unique in there own way take jinx my 15 week old blue front he has out smarted me a number of times I read a article a while back now some guy in Chicago had a umbrella too that he use to let people handle for a small charge and you got your picture taken with it the camera was used as a destraction while the umbrella too picked peoples pockets if that's not smart what is lol.

 

[DebsFlock]

Depends on how you define smart! Even if a test were devised to measure bird intelligence, the result would tell you how well the birds did on that particular test... it's sort of what Pepperberg was/is going for in her research, to understand how sophisticated a bird brain really is.

 

[henpecked]

Not get off track, but i was under the impression that pepperberg's study was more about the mechanics of learning. I understand Alex was an exceptional CAG in the right place at the right time. But could it have also happened with the right amazon ? Is Pepperberg now studying intelligence in parrots ? Is it limited to CAGs?

 

[paulhanlon]

I understand they have another CAG named griffon I think he's going through the same tests Alex was put through but I'm not to sure on that one I'd have to give it a Google but i agree with you rich Alex was amazing in every way but i do think a amazon could have done the same thing although we will never know because I can't see them using a zon any time soon.

 

[antoinette]

I reckon any bird, given the opportunity Alex was given, would come out with top results. Alex was not born clever, he was taught many different things. He was an extraordinary bird.

I spend an hour each day, talking to Mishka, nose to beak..... where he learns new words, and together we turn them into sentences. If I did not spend time talking to him each day, he would not have to ability to talk and communicate so well.

Give any bird, whether an Amazon, Grey etc... lots of one on one time, playing and teaching the bird different things and the sky is the limit.

 

[henpecked]

Maybe it's just another example of you get out of it what you put into it. Better effort= better results.

 

[antoinette]

Maybe it's just another example of you get out of it what you put into it. Better effort= better results.

Spot on henpecked......
You get out what you put in.

 

[Pookamama]

Maybe we should all try the rattle-the-walnut test with our fids to see who gets it and who doesn't! Smart parrots 'cleverer than 2-year-olds' shows astonishing new evidence | Mail Online

 

[henpecked]

If it food related,,, won't take Jake but a second.

 

[PortaPerch]

Scientists have always used brain size as indicator of intelligence. That is do doubt true in mammals, where the skull can evolve in size and shape to hold the brain as it develops. How many times have you heard that we use a small fraction of our brain?

Birds have been evolving many times longer than mammals. Because their skull has to be compact, lightweight and aerodynamic, birds make better use of their gray matter.

Therefore, comparing a CAG walnut sized brain to a human brain is stupid, so to speak.

PP

 

[DebsFlock]

Not get off track, but i was under the impression that pepperberg's study was more about the mechanics of learning. I understand Alex was an exceptional CAG in the right place at the right time. But could it have also happened with the right amazon ? Is Pepperberg now studying intelligence in parrots ? Is it limited to CAGs?

I understand they have another CAG named griffon I think he's going through the same tests Alex was put through but I'm not to sure on that one I'd have to give it a Google but i agree with you rich Alex was amazing in every way but i do think a amazon could have done the same thing although we will never know because I can't see them using a zon any time soon.

She's had several study birds, but none has come even close to the level of performance Alex did. Griffen and Arthur (aka Wart) are the current study birds. I don't know why she doesn't have more, I'd guess she's resource-limited. You can check out the Alex Foundation website. The Alex Foundation | Avian Education Foundation

Her actual goal was to study cognition in parrots. She chose CAGs because she wanted to use language as a window into their thinking. She's stuck with CAGs just because that makes the study more consistent. But her intention was to shed light on parrots in general not specifically CAGs. Her interest was initially piqued by a budgie she had as a child.

The learning model she chose to use -- model/rival -- has gotten a lot of air time, but that's not what she set out to study, that's how she did the training in order to get the study results. It was the business of sorting out shapes and colors and numbers she was really after. At least that's my understanding after reading up.

 

[Pookamama]

How many times have you heard that we use a small fraction of our brain?


PP

Just because you've heard something a lot of times, doesn't mean it's true. We use most of our brains. The whole "We only use 10 percent of our brain" is a myth. snopes.com: Ten Percent of our Brains

 

[Echo]

Not get off track, but i was under the impression that pepperberg's study was more about the mechanics of learning. I understand Alex was an exceptional CAG in the right place at the right time. But could it have also happened with the right amazon ? Is Pepperberg now studying intelligence in parrots ? Is it limited to CAGs?

I believe that back 30 years ago (about when she started the study), the Greys were thought to have the clearer voice as far as human speech.