[Bubba]

Well I think it's amazing - this crow susses exactly how to use a bit of wire, which isn't exactly a naturally occurring matrial....

[fatboySlimfast]

anyones whos been to castle hill will have met the infamous Kea's, basically a big drab green parrot. there bastards, really intelligent and love anything new. one tried to av it away with my shoe. i saw one strip someones windscreen washers and the window seals in under a minute...the locals have to lock doorsto outhouses and stuff cos they know how to use latches and slide bolts :shock:

[mireeves]

To The Owen

I think the crow did more than just drop them onto the road they sussed out that a red traffic light stopped traffic, so they could drop them by the crossing, have them broken by a car then wait for the red light to pick them up without getting run over.

[T.H.]

That's smarter than most people I know.

[underground]

That's smarter than most people I know.

Good point, personally I think it's dead arrogant for folk to say that any animal which can do something which humans appear to assume is their preserve is somehow amazing... Unusual I'll grant you, since you don't see many crows using tools in the wild, but f**k me, why shouldn't they?

I reckon the orang Utans etc. which learn to communicate on a lexigraph are doing something that probably comes naturally but they don't do in that way- they are just having to conform to the human's way of getting them to communicate. If they could speak they'd [probably tell the scientists to f**koff and leave them alone- or learn Orang Utan language if they want them to chat....

[underground]

Soz Gruff, I'm just pi55ed cos I didn't get on in primate ethology, instead I chose the booze and narcs route (funny that, living in Aberystwyth)  :freak: Anyway, I wunt having a pop at you, but the sort of telly programs on Sky where yanks force captive primates to perform stereotypical tasks in exchange for food.....

Otters climb ladders, no-one puts them on TV saying they're amazing innit? Cos they're less interesting for the layman to anthropomorphise.

I got a good new book about singing gorillas and animal intelligence at the weekend, by the way. :D