Crows are very smart birds. The smartest bird in the world is the raven. And that's why…. This is also interesting

Everyone has heard this saying: "wise as a raven." What makes this sullen bird the smartest? Most likely, the reason for this is the famous poem by Edgar Allan Poe, where the raven was the main character. But on the other hand, maybe because they know where to find the best, can solve puzzles, have specific goals, lie for their own benefit and contact similar species like them?

"Marshmallow" for a smart bird

Almost forty years ago, the legendary “zephyr experiment” took place in the UK. Its essence is as follows: each of the detachment of 4-year-old children, of which there were six hundred, received a marshmallow and had to eat it immediately, or leave it in their hands for a while and earn two marshmallows already. As a result, some of the children heard about the second condition of the task when they chewed marshmallows with pleasure. As it turned out later, the kids, who showed stamina and restraint, showed excellent results in their school years.

How are the crows connected in this case? Up to this point, it was common knowledge that crows can hide food supplies for themselves, but this does not indicate the presence of intelligence. For example, squirrels dig nuts into the ground, but after that they don’t remember where they made hiding places in 75% of cases, and because of this, a large number of new trees.

But black wise birds are not like that. During the experiment, it turned out that a raven can refuse a tasty treat if it knows that in the future it will receive even more for it. When the experimental birds were offered food right now or a tool with which they could open the “prize” box, they chose the tool, even if the box did not yet exist. The crows remembered that the box always appears 15 minutes after the tool, and decided to be patient in order to win.

Thieves and deceivers

But that's not all. In another experiment, a crow was asked to drink water from a narrow vessel into which its head could not fit. Then the bird showed an excellent knowledge of the law of Archimedes: she began to throw heavy objects into the vessel, which raised the level of the water, until finally the raven could drink.

Despite their intelligence, crows are not very burdened with moral dilemmas and, on occasion, are ready to steal food from a fellow. To do this, they monitor where other birds hide food, and then rob caches. But legitimate food owners are also often cunning and only pretend to hide supplies, misleading thieves.

Of course, crows do not always behave like complete egoists. They can tell other crows where to find a source of delicious food and cooperate to drive off rivals. Moreover, the birds call not only “their own”, sometimes inviting wolves to the wounded animals. Predators kill them and take some of the meat, and the rest goes to the "gunners".

“Needless to say, a crow is a smart bird, many people know this. Scientists who study the intelligence of a crow claim that these birds are smarter than a four-year-old child and much smarter than many animals.

Ornithologists consider the crow a unique object for observation and an animal whose intelligence is comparable to that of a person.

Most birds from the genus of crows have remarkable mental abilities. They often outperform many mammals and other birds in intelligence tests. New Caledonian crows (Corvus moneduloides) are "champions" in intelligence even among their relatives. On our Earth, only man, some higher primates and these amazing crows know how to make and use tools.

Biologists from the University of Cambridge conducted an experiment confirming the high level of intelligence of crows.

Five wild New Caledonian ravens participated in the experiment, which had to get a piece of meat from a vessel half-filled with water, showing intelligence and ingenuity, because the food was not taken out in the usual and simple way, the beak did not reach the food.

Having made several attempts, all the wards of scientists were able to independently find the most rational solution to this problem - they took the "stones" in their beak, lifted them to the throat of the cylinder and dropped them into the water. Step by step, the water level rose and after a while a piece of food rose to a level at which the crow could catch it with its beak.

The crows quickly learned their lesson, easily getting food. Scientists scattered around a lot of different stones made of light materials that did not sink, but they did not succeed in fooling the wise crows. Birds chose heavy large stones in order to quickly fill the vessel and eat food floating on the surface. Probably, the crow estimates the weight of the stone, taking it in its beak, and realizes that light stones do not bring prey closer to it.

Scientists changed the vessels, added vessels with sand, or filled them with nothing. Surprisingly, the birds weren't always looking for the biggest rock or vessel filled with water - they were often looking for alternatives.

Thus, scientists have found that crows are able to evaluate the mass and shape of their "tools", to distinguish between different types of matter - sand, water and air.

The vast majority of animals on Earth are looking for food on a conditioned reflex, but not crows, and, moreover, New Zealand, the most intelligent of them. The crows consciously solved new riddles and did not associate the signs of the presence of food with the presence of water in the vessel and large stones next to it.

Thus, the crows living in New Caledonia not only know how to use tools, but also consciously evaluate their suitability and effectiveness in each case, which puts these birds on a par with humans and higher primates. New Zealand and British scientists wrote about this in an article published in the journal PLoSONE.

Why is a crow so smart?

It is believed that the crow is very smart by nature, and here is another advantage: crows are flocking birds. Living in a flock, where every bird already has a mind, the crows also learn and learn from their relatives in the flock. Thus, a collective experience arises, which is mastered by each bird in the flock. That's why crows are so smart.

Crows are social birds. They are not alien to mutual assistance. If the chicks in the nest are in danger, no matter from whom, even from a predator, even from a person, the whole flock will selflessly defend itself, the offender will not seem a little. Of course, there are small “household” disassemblies inside the flock, but we, people, often sin with this.

Observations of these unique birds have shown that they are able to plan their actions. In one experiment conducted at Oxford University in the UK, a bird went so far as to bend a wire with its beak to make a hook and get food from a narrow transparent flask. The crow managed to get a basket of treats, although no one taught her such tricks.

Crows skillfully hide their prey, as spies, looking around, bury "stash". Birds also realize that they should hide their prey if other birds have seen where the food is hidden. But, what should be noted, the crows hid the supplies only after the "witnesses" flew away.

Crows are extremely cunning, they rarely fall into traps and, even if they are caught, they are able to get out of them. Anyone who has ever dealt with them will tell you about these qualities of a raven. Fishermen told how crows in winter, when holes were cut in the ice and a fishing line with live bait was lowered there, pulled it out in the absence of fishermen and pecked. According to eyewitnesses, not a single crow has yet been hooked.

In general, crows, living for centuries next to a person, are in many ways similar to people. So, crows correctly determine the meaning of traffic signals - at red light they calmly pick up the corpses of animals hit by cars on the road, and at green they fly away. They perfectly distinguish what is in the hands of a person, a stick or a gun; distinguish between a child and an adult, a man and a woman

Not so long ago, residents of Tokyo observed the amazing behavior of these birds. City crows gathered in noisy crowds at crossroads highways. At a red light, without fear of cars, they quickly flocked to the roadway and laid out walnuts on the asphalt. As the cars passed and the red light came back on, cunning crows were harvesting the cracked nuts.

Having found a dry bread crust, the crow will never choke on dry food, but will definitely find a puddle, soak the bread, and only after that will it eat or take it to the chicks. She can open a matchbox with her paw and unwrap a candy wrapper without damaging it.

Ravens are monogamous birds - having found a mate, they live with it to the end. And crows can live longer than all birds - 50-75 years. These amazing birds are wonderful and caring parents. They nurse chicks, guard and even raise them.

Crows communicate with each other a lot and with pleasure, the crow language is extremely developed, has a rich "vocabulary". With different sounds, the crows turn to the young, swear, threaten, emit alarms, and have a love conversation. Sometimes several birds make one sound, in unison, for greater volume.

Ravens are also kept as pets. Having tamed such a bird, a person gets a lot of pleasure from communicating with it. With a crow, sometimes, you can “talk” because these amazing birds can imitate the human voice. A tamed crow becomes a faithful and reliable friend to a person for life. A domestic crow will protect housing and the owner from a villain no worse than a guard dog. Alas, it is impossible to release a tamed crow into the wild, it will not be able to adapt and will die.

And not without a sense of humor

"THE CROW SAD THE US SYMBOL AND RIDED LIKE A TAXI"

"The Crow Rides the Wipers"

"At Moscow State University, for example, in one study, crows were offered straight sticks with hooks at the end to get pieces of meat. Without hesitation, the subjects chose the second option. The next time they were given only straight wire rods, the ends of which were immediately turned into hooks by the beaks of birds. And in the final round there was a sensation. In the course of the experiment, the crows had to press the target button with their beak in order for food to fall into the feeder. When the target was blocked by a screen with a small hole, the birds were taught to stick a match into it, allowing them to reach the button. What was the surprise of scientists when one of the tested "persons" instead began to slip a match from the side, using it as a lever to achieve the desired result. This method turned out to be easier, because. did not require aiming at the notorious hole.

In addition, crows have excellent memory and high learning ability. According to experts, they have the ability for rational activity, exhibit associative and logical thinking, possess elementary mathematical knowledge (count up to five, distinguish between shape, symmetry, size ratio, three-dimensional bodies and flat figures). And they know how to make friends. They live in flocks, get food together and share it with each other, jointly protect themselves from enemies, are capable of mutual assistance, sometimes they even build nests together, do not leave relatives in trouble. In difficult situations, they can turn to a person for help. Here is one of those stories. One evening there was a knock on the balcony door of the apartment on the seventh floor. The visitor was a crow with a bone stuck in its throat. The bird approached the owner of the house and lifted her head up, demonstrating the problem, and when he saved her from misfortune, she turned and went home, asking with a nod and a single “carr” to open the balcony, through which she got to good people. Note: I not only learned the route, but also knew how to get them to let me in and who to turn to - the strongest in the family. Where can you get such knowledge if you do not study Homo sapiens?

Winged neighbors .............................................

They are black and gray, frightened and not frightened, large and smaller.

Whether you live in a city or a village - it doesn't matter, you have every chance to wake up

in the morning, awakened by their cheerful croaking. It's easy to guess who

talking about, right?

Ravens have been living side by side with humans since ancient times, and many of us are not

happy with this neighborhood. There is an opinion that the crow is a bad bird in

in all senses: bringing only harm and failure, besides - not very smart

. To prove that such rumors are based solely on prejudice,

pretty simple.

MYSTERY OF ORNITOLOGY

It’s worth starting, however, with a well-known pun in the names. What is the difference

between crow and crow? Trying to find the answer, it's easy to get confused and

This is not at all surprising, because birds belong to the same family -

corvids, and the genus - crows. This confusion exists only in

in Russian. For example, in English the division is clearer. Family

- in Latin - Corvidae. Crow - "crow". Crow - " In general, in the family

corvids includes a great variety of birds - jackdaws, rooks,

jays, cissuses, magpies ... As a rule, people refer to most of these

birds are negative. Some of them really harm the agricultural

economy, but for the most part "information is greatly exaggerated." And for sure

the opinion that the crow is a stupid creature is erroneous.

DIFFERENT IN INTELLIGENCE AND INTELLIGENCE

A stamp is firmly entrenched in our minds, that if a bird repeats

words after a person, she does it thoughtlessly and out of place. main blow

parrots took over human prejudices. Being, in general, one

of the smartest birds on the planet, they bear the lifelong stigma of "butt-

fool". The ravens were somewhat more fortunate, because the raven was considered from ancient times

a symbol of wisdom. Corvus corax, he is an ordinary raven,

Great understands and reproduces human speech. At the same time it was

noticed that for the first couple of years this wonderful bird is trying to teach

a person's own language, then gives up and stops trying. Being

tamed from childhood, the raven remains faithful to the owner for life.

The most famous family of ravens living in the Tower of London, which,

staying wild birds easily mastered human speech and

daily greet "their" caretaker.

Ravens, jackdaws and rooks cannot boast of linguistic

talents. What does not prevent them in terms of intelligence from remaining on a par with

higher primates. For example, studying in 2009 mental abilities

rooks, scientists from the University of Cambridge were shocked. Before

rooks were tasked with getting a worm placed in a special

container with outlet tube. In one of the tests, the worm fell out of

container, if the bird placed a stone of the required weight in the tube. In a different

In the experiment, the rooks had to pick up a stone of the desired geometric shape.

In the third series of tests, the birds were required to make their own

a hook made of wire, with which it was possible to pull out

worm container. Another experiment suggested that they could

use two different weapons in sequence. In all experiments, rooks

found the right solution, and often the first time. So, the birds bent

wire into the hook without any prompting, although before that they had not had to

do nothing like that! But in the scientific community it was believed that such

only primates can use tools thoughtfully.

INTELLIGENT BEAKS AND LONG MEMORY

It can be argued that it is not difficult for tamed rooks to complete the task,

placed before them by the people. But even the wildest

crows show miracles of quick wit and amazing coherence

in action. For example, Swedish fishermen, leaving cast fishing rods without

they quickly jump to the fishing rods, wind up the fishing lines, eat the bait, and

then ... they throw the fishing rods back! An even more telling case

happened to students at the University of Washington who somehow

caught a few crows for research. The capture was rough, the birds

they were simply swaddled in nets, then weighed, measured and set free.

Surprisingly, the crows firmly remembered their offenders and took revenge on them.

all free time while they were fresh air - flying around

croaked loudly and caused a lot of trouble. It has continued

a week, then a month, then resumed after the summer holidays. And even

when the students graduated and returned to the university only

after a few years, they found that the crows still remember them. Happening,

Ravens and ravens are one of the smartest birds, they have a rare ability to notice the main thing in any situation, to draw far-reaching conclusions from it. They are considered "inventors" and can identify a problem and solve it efficiently and quickly, unlike most other birds who do everything by trial and error.

If a crow is offered food to choose from two feeders, and the bird knows from experience that the second one will be immediately removed, then it will unmistakably choose the one in which there are more worms, at least for one. And even in more complex experiments, she invariably turns out to be on top. After conducting many experiments, it was found that these birds are able to accurately quantitatively compare figures in experiments, determine the sequence of events, form reflexes from 4–5 signals, and also count up to 8. They have developed mutual imitation and learning quite complex behavior. Ornithologists believe that crows are capable of solving elementary logical problems and have an excellent memory for events and faces.

Source:

It has been proven that crows remember their offender for a long time. In Seattle, ornithologists conducted an interesting experiment. They caught seven crows and just tagged them. No harm was done to the birds, they just experienced certain inconveniences and stress. After tagging, the birds were released. All the scientists who took part in the experiment were wearing scary leather masks. The idea was to test whether the birds were able to remember and then distinguish the faces of the people who attacked them. For example, an unprepared person will not be able to isolate one particular crow in a flock. The Ravens did their job. They perfectly remembered the mask-faces and, on occasion, actively resented and attacked people in masks. Moreover, after some time, the whole flock dived into the "villains" in in full force. Interesting fact, the birds attacked not just people in masks, but people in those masks.
That is, they distinguish our faces, they can identify the right person in the crowd, and even involve their relatives in persecution. But without masks, scientists for birds were of no interest. So it can be said with confidence that the memory and observation skills of crows are excellently developed.
Crows perfectly distinguish what is in the hands of a person - a stick or a gun. Distinguish between a child and an adult, a man and a woman. But this is not the limit, and crows are capable of more. They can do extraordinary things. Stop, look around, assess the situation. Recall what you have seen before.

Source:

Ravens have an innate ability to make tools such as probes and hooks, even by combining different items. Particularly striking is a cone-shaped probe with a point at the end and a number of small hooks along the side surface, pointed in the opposite direction, made by them to get food from hard-to-reach places.

Source:

These birds have perfectly learned to use the anthropogenic environment for their own purposes. For example, they know that it is best to break nuts by throwing them on hard asphalt, and even better under the wheels of cars. And they pick up a broken nut only at a red light of a traffic light (in places with increased traffic). Sometimes in this way crows lure animals under the wheels of the car, calculating the speed of transport. Sometimes out of revenge, sometimes for food. If a crow is interested in a matchbox, then it can open it with its paw. And he can get to the candy by unrolling and not damaging the candy wrapper.