cockatoo
dr. dolittle | November 10, 2012Check out this picture of a captive cockatoo (Cacatua goffiniana) in the Department of Cognitive Biology at the University of Vienna using a tool:
Image from: Scientific American
Figaro (shown above) was observed by a student using a piece of bamboo to try to retrieve a dropped pebble. This was the first documented evidence of a Goffin's cockatoo attempting to use a tool so the researchers decided to try a little experiment. They placed a cashew just outside of Figaro's cage and observed as Figaro attempted to retrieve it using a stick he found on the floor of the aviary. When that was…
edyong | April 30, 2009Snowball, the sulphur-crested cockatoo, is an internet superstar. He's known for his penchant for grooving to music, notably Everybody by the Backstreet Boys. As the music plays, Snowball bobs his head and taps his feet in perfect time with it. If it speeds up or slows down, his rhythm does too. He is one of two parrots that are leading a dance dance revolution, by showing that the human behaviour of moving in time to music (even really, really bad music) is one that's shared by other animals.
People who've attended parties at scientific events may question the ability of humans to move to a…
grrlscientist | October 24, 2008tags: parrots, endangered species, conservation, birds, ornithology, Indonesia
Masakambing (Abbott's) yellow-crested cockatoo, Cacatua sulphurea abbotti at Sukun tree.
Image: Indonesian Parrot Project, summer 2008 [larger view].
I had the most fascinating telephone discussion with Bonnie Zimmermann, Vice President of the Indonesian Parrot Project, about the recent reported rediscovery of several individuals of the rarest cockatoo in the world. This species, known as the Masakambing (Abbott's) yellow-crested cockatoo, Cacatua sulphurea abbotti, is a subspecies of Yellow (Sulfur)-crested…
