National Geographic

BRAIN MASS``````Common name6FLHQWLƃFQDPH``````FOREBRAIN``````5.7 g 9.6 g``````7 g``````9.2 g``````14.5 g``````Red-tailed hawk%XWHRMDPDLFHQVLV``````Mallard$QDVSODW\UK\QFKRV``````Pileated woodpecker'U\RFRSXVSLOHDWXV``````Gray parrot3VLWWDFXVHULWKDFXV``````Common raven&RUYXVFRUD[63%65%77%79%80%1 ST5 TH``````2 ND9 TH``````3 RDINNOVATIVENESS RANKINGFOREBRAIN, ASPORTION OFTOTAL BRAIN``````0RVWLQQRYDWLYH``````60%``````70%``````80%``````90%``````BEHAVIORS OBSERVEDIN BIRD GROUPBird BrainpowerBirds are far more intelligent than once believed, but not all are intellectualequals. Parrots, as well as birds in the corvid family, such as jays, ravens,and crows, are among the smartest species, thanks to proportionally largeforebrains with densely packed neurons. They’re also some of the mostsociable, exhibiting interactive behaviors that might be expected of a primate.Many brain structures involved in complexcognition are found in the forebrain. Scientistspostulate that the bigger a bird’s forebrain aspart of its entire brain, the smarter the bird.The complex thinkersThe crafty innovatorsBird BehaviorCorvids rise above the restwhen it comes to the rankingof a bird’s ability to use novelbehaviors to solve a task.Ducks and other birds thatare highly independentupon hatching are less in-novative. They don’t needto learn much from par-ents or from trial and error.Many skills displayed by birdsare instinctual, but some birdsare also capable of learningas they grow and adapt totheir environments.Some birds have thecapacity to reason andmake logical inferences.``````Some can use objects—found or fashioned—tosolve problems.``````Some species are able tolearn through observingother birds’ behavior.ALL VALUES ARE FOR WILD SPECIMENS EXCEPT FOR THE BROWN LEGHORN CHICKEN. BIRDS ARE NOT TO SCALE.PUZZLE SOLVING USING TOOLS STUDYING OTHERS