05 Oct Birds of a Feather Chat Together
In the wild, parrots thrive in large, social flocks. But for the 20 million birds who are kept in captivity, such as in people’s homes as pets, these social creatures often spend much of their day alone.
Lonely parrots can be unhappy parrots, so some clever researchers devised a simple yet ingenious solution for the pet birds to connect.
In collaboration with an online training program called Parrot Kindergarten, the parrots participating in this study were taught to ring a bell, after which a tablet would be presented. On the screen, the parrot would then see images of fellow pet birds. They would touch the image of one of the parrots to choose a friend, and this would initiate a video call. Once the parrots learned how to place these calls, the pet birds were allowed to call one another freely.
Researchers found that the parrots took full advantage of the opportunity to call each other and that the parrots typically stayed on the call for the maximum time allowed.
The birds delighted in these interactions and forged strong friendships. Many of the birds chose to call the same parrot over and over again. During the calls, some of the parrots learned new skills such as flying or how to make new sounds. Other parrots used the time to mirror each other and dance or sing together. When a new toy appeared in their cage, the parrots would often call a friend and hold it up to the screen so the friend could have a look and share in their joy.
I was telling the girls about this research and they made the happy little sound of “Oooohhhhh,” that they make when they see or hear about things that are adorable.
Humans are equally adorable. When we see our friends, our eyes light up. We wave to each other. We learn from each other. We dance and sing together. We hold things that are important to us up to our screens to share bits of our lives. We share in each other’s joy.
We’re all just little animals, finding ways to connect and share our lives with others.