{"id":147952,"date":"2025-04-29T22:02:21","date_gmt":"2025-04-30T03:02:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/windycityparrot.com\/?p=147952"},"modified":"2025-04-29T22:02:21","modified_gmt":"2025-04-30T03:02:21","slug":"why-underestimating-parrots-intelligence-has-been-a-mistake","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dev.windycityparrot.com\/?p=147952","title":{"rendered":"Why Underestimating Parrots&#8217; Intelligence Has Been a Mistake"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 18pt;\">Imagine a world where birds are as smart as apes. Sounds like a fantasy, right? Well, it&#8217;s not. Meet parrots, also known as &#8220;feathered apes,&#8221; due to their advanced cognitive abilities.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 18pt;\"><!--more--><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 18pt;\"> For a long time, scientists underestimated the intelligence of parrots, but recent studies have revealed that they are capable of complex thinking, problem-solving, and even innovation.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 18pt;\">The Brainy Birds<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 18pt;\">Parrots have large brains relative to their body size, similar to those of primates. Their brains are structured differently, but they share similarities in neurophysiological functions that enable complex cognition.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><iframe title=\"Cockatoos Make Tools from Different Materials\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/vBQpqtbxplQ\" width=\"854\" height=\"\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><span data-mce-type=\"bookmark\" style=\"display: inline-block; width: 0px; overflow: hidden; line-height: 0;\" class=\"mce_SELRES_start\">\ufeff<\/span><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 18pt;\"> Research has shown that parrots have a high number of neurons in their brains, which are densely packed and energy-efficient. This unique brain structure allows them to excel in motoric dexterity and vocal learning.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 18pt;\">Cognitive Abilities<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 18pt;\">Parrots have demonstrated exceptional cognitive abilities in various domains, including:<\/span><\/p>\n<ol>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 18pt;\">Executive Functions: Parrots have shown inhibitory control, flexibility, and working memory, similar to those of primates. They can wait for rewards, switch between tasks, and even exhibit contrafreeloading behavior (preferring to work for food rather than receiving it freely).<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 18pt;\">Problem-Solving: Parrots are skilled problem-solvers, and their abilities may be driven by sexual selection. They have been observed using tools, solving puzzles, and even innovating new solutions.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 18pt;\">Planning: While parrots have not been tested for episodic foresight, they have demonstrated rudimentary forms of cued planning for the near future, such as safekeeping behaviors.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>https:\/\/dev.windycityparrot.com\/product\/nekton-relax-for-birds-can-help-with-parrot-stress-35g\/<\/p>\n<p><strong><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 18pt;\">Recent Research Highlights<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 18pt;\">* African grey parrots have been shown to wait for up to 15 minutes for a reward, demonstrating exceptional inhibitory control.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 18pt;\">* Kea parrots have been observed using sticks to access food in trap boxes, exhibiting innovative problem-solving.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 18pt;\">* Sulphur-crested cockatoos have been seen opening trash bins in urban areas, demonstrating complex problem-solving and possibly even social learning.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><iframe title=\"How Cockatoos Outsmart Humans To Open Trash Bins | World Wide Waste | Business Insider\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/N-3oHccgenE\" width=\"854\" height=\"480\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><span data-mce-type=\"bookmark\" style=\"display: inline-block; width: 0px; overflow: hidden; line-height: 0;\" class=\"mce_SELRES_start\">\ufeff<\/span><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><strong><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 18pt;\">Conclusion<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 18pt;\">Parrots are intelligent birds that have been underestimated for too long. Their unique brain structure and cognitive abilities make them one of the most fascinating species in the animal kingdom. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 18pt;\">Further research is needed to fully understand the extent of their intelligence, but one thing is clear: parrots are more than just pretty faces \u2013 they are clever, resourceful, and innovative creatures.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Imagine a world where birds are as smart as apes. Sounds like a fantasy, right? Well, it&#8217;s not. Meet parrots, also known as &#8220;feathered apes,&#8221; due to their advanced cognitive abilities.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":147965,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_eb_attr":"","_templately_pack_id":"","_templately_imported_at":"","_templately_source":"","_templately_import_session_id":"","_thinkrank_schema_form_data":"","_thinkrank_selected_schema_type":"","_thinkrank_additional_schemas":"","_thinkrank_canonical_url":"","_thinkrank_og_title":"","_thinkrank_og_description":"","_thinkrank_og_image":"","_thinkrank_twitter_title":"","_thinkrank_twitter_description":"","_thinkrank_twitter_image":"","_thinkrank_imported_from":"","_thinkrank_focus_keywords":[],"_thinkrank_focus_keyword":"","_thinkrank_robots_meta_enabled":0,"_thinkrank_robots_meta":"","_thinkrank_advanced_robots_meta":"","_thinkrank_exclude_from_search":0,"_thinkrank_exclude_from_archives":0,"_thinkrank_primary_category":0,"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_seo_schema_type":"","_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":true,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"page_builder":"","_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[194,196],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-147952","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-bird-parrot-anaotmy","category-bird-behavior"],"acf":[],"featured_image_src":{"landsacpe":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/dev.windycityparrot.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/macaw-parrot-in-an-academic-cap-1.jpg?resize=1140%2C445&ssl=1",1140,445,true],"list":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/dev.windycityparrot.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/macaw-parrot-in-an-academic-cap-1.jpg?resize=463%2C348&ssl=1",463,348,true],"medium":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/dev.windycityparrot.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/macaw-parrot-in-an-academic-cap-1.jpg?fit=300%2C300&ssl=1",300,300,true],"full":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/dev.windycityparrot.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/macaw-parrot-in-an-academic-cap-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C1200&ssl=1",1200,1200,false]},"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/phcfkq-Cuk","jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/dev.windycityparrot.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/macaw-parrot-in-an-academic-cap-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C1200&ssl=1","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dev.windycityparrot.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/147952","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dev.windycityparrot.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dev.windycityparrot.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dev.windycityparrot.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dev.windycityparrot.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=147952"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/dev.windycityparrot.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/147952\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dev.windycityparrot.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/147965"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dev.windycityparrot.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=147952"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dev.windycityparrot.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=147952"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dev.windycityparrot.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=147952"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}