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Crows could be the smartest animal other than primates

bbc.com

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Re: Crows could be the smartest animal other than primates

#431

Post by turk73 »

lovehashbrowns wrote: post #332
state_less wrote: post #291

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I was in Nepal having breakfast. Some crows are sitting there watching me eat. I look down to read my book, and in not more than a few seconds, I hear the clinking of dishes. I look up and the crows are flying off with my toast and jam. It was right in front of me, but they were quick enough to get in and out before I could react. I realized that they are probably aware of my lack of attention to my food and that the…

I had lunch with a crow in Austin once! It was my favorite experience. I was having pizza on an outside table on 3rd/2nd ave, and a Crow was standing nearby looking at me, probably waiting until I finished so it could swoop in on the left-overs. I motioned it to come closer, left a bit of pizza on top of the table, and it flew up on the table with me. Then I'd munch on a bite, tear off a piece for the crow, and it wo…

Bread is junk food for birds, fyi.

Re: Crows could be the smartest animal other than primates

#432

Post by Breza »

dghughes wrote: post #415
hailk wrote: post #344

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Also, cats aren't as social as either dogs or crows (collaborative hunting wise). Cats not coming when summoned is a very common thing, even when they recognise their names.

Cats will come over to you if you squat down, it happens almost instantly. In cat world I guess the human being low means you're nice. Cats are heavily into patterns. My family always had cats and you could see how they craved for everything to be in order. You come home at 5pm, you eat at 6, you watch TV at 7pm, you turn off the TV at 10:35pm, you brush your teeth at 10:40pm and on and on. Cats know and expect your…

Confirmed, both from reading (I suggest The Lion in the Living Room) and from experience. My cats know my schedule better than I do.

Re: Crows could be the smartest animal other than primates

#433

Post by neonate »

thatguy0900 wrote: post #378
perl4ever wrote: post #369

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm sorry, are you having an argument with someone about jackdaws in a parallel universe? If you want to have one with me, you've got to...ease into it.

It's a famous reddit copypasta

https://old.reddit.com/r/circlejerkcopypasta/comments/2ceq3u...

Re: Crows could be the smartest animal other than primates

#434

Post by glenstein »

cwkoss wrote: post #371
pisky wrote: post #104

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Here in Australia most people now buy food and drink by tapping their bank cards on a reader. Can't be long now until a particularly smart crow sees this at a beach side shop, and steals a card to copy this. Is a shopkeeper obligated to serve other species? I for one will welcome our new flying thief overlords.

Joshua Klein built a crow vending machine with some success (using coins). Tap to pay could be quite a bit more profitable, though I assume you'd have a pretty high chargeback rate. http://www.josh.is/crow-machine/

His research claims have been disputed, and an initially favorable NYT story about him ended up being retracted. I think he probably can't be cited anymore as a credible source on the question of crow intelligence.

Re: Crows could be the smartest animal other than primates

#435

Post by nolok »

m463 wrote: post #391
wDcBKgt66V8WDs wrote: post #333

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Inverse story: my dad sprayed water at a crow on his lawn, the crow then took to perching on the clogged gutter above the front door and kicking water at anyone who walked under.

Being a Dad means to set a good example. Otherwise you get buffonery like this. :)

As much as I love my dad for all the good exemple he taught me, there is no doubt in my mind that if I were to lose him, the buffoneries as you call them would be what I miss the most.

Re: Crows could be the smartest animal other than primates

#436

Post by Tepix »

coldtea wrote: post #97
Tepix wrote: post #67

Earlier quoted context omitted.

OK so speech has begun 100,000 years ago (perhaps earlier). My point stands: Would humans without poetry not be considered intelligent? Hardly.

> My point stands: Would humans without poetry not be considered intelligent? Hardly. They would be considered less intelligent than humans that have developed speech, and later poetry and other refined forms of expression. The same way humans that painted their caves are considered more intelligent than the humanoids that proceeded them, that weren't as able to express themselves.

I don't agree. Perhaps an entity that is more intelligent than humans will determine that poetry is not worth it and there is a more advanced art form it uses instead. Nowadays, most of us are not painting caves.

Re: Crows could be the smartest animal other than primates

#437

Post by tunap »

duelingjello wrote: post #8
burtonator wrote: post #6

Crows are amazingly intelligent animals. My GF and I went to the beach about a month ago and took our dog. The crows weren't frightened at ALL of our dog. They realized they could basically just 'float' up in the air when he came by using the breeze. The fact that they were amazingly calm about it was really telling. Second. We hid our stuff under a blanket. They realize it's still there as they have item persistence…

Yeap. Food and valuables have to be toddler-proofed around crows. They can also steal your wallet or your keys if you leave them unsecured. And, damn, they're as good as human thieves at reading situations for opportunism.

I've observed Grand Canyon South Rim is a great example. They actively work the tourists who make hand-to-mouth gestures and steal when items are unguarded. Their team strategizing while hacking bear-proof garbage cans is impressive, too. One handles the door/partition while one or more enters for the snacks. I spent 1/2 a day watching them.

Re: Crows could be the smartest animal other than primates

#438

Post by girvo »

klenwell wrote: post #298
dta3456 wrote: post #139

When I was a child, I'd spend a lot of time at my grandfathers farm, and one summer he took in an injured crow that hurt its wing. For some strange reason, he named all of his animals Jack, cats, dogs and now crows. So we'd go out in the morning and my grandfather would call out "Jack" and the Dog would come running down the yard, and then next thing you'd see the crow hopping down the yard after the dog. It would ar…

That's a wonderful story. My only New Year's resolution this year was to befriend a crow. So far, no progress. Maybe next year.

Two crows have recently taken up residence in my backyard, along with my friendly bush turkey, Doug. They’re so much fun to watch and interact with!

Re: Crows could be the smartest animal other than primates

#439

Post by girvo »

Ididntdothis wrote: post #11

They also like to annoy other animals. I have seen it now a few times that a crow or a group of crows would approach a dog from behind and nip their tail or butt. When the dog turns around the crow will jump back a little and pretend it has nothing to do with this. When the dog looks away they will do it again. I have seen similar behavior with swans. When my dog chases they get out of the way but only the minimum ne…

Wild sulphur crested cockatoos that live in the scrub behind my fence do this to my neighbours dog.

It never stops being funny to me

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