Clever New Caledonian crows can use three tools

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I just came across this interesting article:

Scientists from New Zealand's University of Auckland have found that the birds are able to use three tools in succession to reach some food.
The crows, which use tools in the wild, have also shown other problem-solving behaviour, but this find suggests they are more innovative than was thought.

Here's the article and a video:
BBC News - Clever New Caledonian crows can use three tools

crows and their smarter raven cousins continue to amaze.

Thanks scientist I really liked that. Big into animal behaviour.

One point they need to look as is individual, group and inter-generation intelligence. These crows are already specialised at using these tools. Perhaps the string manipulation is not occurring in their habitat but it is not dissimilar to manipulating flexible branches and vines.

it also made me think of parrots. Used to have an african grey parrot in the family. As far as manipulation goes she was really good (also great at word association, word order significance). She is a in escape artist, she could figure out any fastening or clip on her cage. She could get herself out of a cage where the door slides down without injuring herself.

You can't really say which of these birds are smarter because it is subjective.

My own non-scientific observations the other day saw a pair of ravens washing their food at the bird bath. If only I had had batteries in my camera!

My grandpa found a crow that had been shot and it lost it's wing. He kept it as a pet and tamed it. He also tamed a wild mountain jay just by sitting in his yard with a bowl of peanuts every day. Then he slaughtered a chicken and it stopped being his friend.

If a bird think's that a chicken, that has probably less than half the intelligence of the bluejay, is a peer, then why cant we see the animals that arent as smart as us as people?

forgot to mention my most relevant story to this topic..

I have a pet parrot and have proven that they dont just repeat what we say. They can talk TO us.

by telling my bird, "nightnight" every night when i turned off the lights, for years, he learned to tell me when he wants to go to bed by grumbling "nightnight" until i shut the lights off. He also calls my name if he can hear me in the other room.

My tortoise, on the otherhand, wont learn anything

..Well maybe im wrong about my tortoise. He does remember what not to eat(after trying it once). He has tried to eat a cigarette butt, a pen cap, a spoon that was bigger than him, my toe, and basically anything he has never seen or sniffed before. He did succeed in eating a rock once, because i thought it was bigger than his head

I believe it. The crows I feed on my lunch breaks (always the same ones) are intelligent. Interesting find.

Three? daaang. Thats two more than me.

I love crows and ravens! A lot of folks think them a nuisance but I love them.