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Meredith DorfnerConservation and Wildlife ManagementThe Grey Parrot Paradox: Braniac or Bird-Brained? 1

1INTRODUCTIONA Brief HistoryGeneral InformationBehaviorAlex the parrot and Dr. PepperbergCase Study #1Case Study #2Future OutlookConclusion

1HISTORYPets for more than 4,000 yearsEgyptian hieroglyphicsAncient Greeks & RomansKing Henry VIIIPortuguese sailors

2Parrots kept as pets over 4,000 years agoClearly depicted Egyptian hieroglyphics depict parrots being kept as petsAncient Greeks & Romans kept African Grey Parrots as pets and prized them for their ability to talkKing Henry VIII of England had an African Grey as a petPortuguese sailors kept them as companions on long sea voyages

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34GENERAL INFORMATION

Psittacus erithacus Two recognized subspecies Congo African Grey Timneh African Grey HerbivorousLong livedRelatively rare

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Scientific Name: Psittacus erithacus (Psittacidae true parrot)

Two recognized subspeciesCongo African Grey - (P. erithacus erithacus)Timneh African Grey - (P. erithacus timneh)

Rainforest of Central and Western AfricaGuinea-Bissau east to Kenya and Tanzania, and south to Angola Timneh restricted to western part of rangeOften near oil-palms on which they like to feed

Herbivorous - seeds on a variety of fruits, nuts and seeds (Oils Palm)

Average lifespan 50-60 years

rarer than previously believed

uplisted from a species of Least Concern to Near Threatened in the 2007 IUCN Red List

recent analysis suggests that up to 21% of the global population may be taken from the wild annuallyprimarily for the pet trade.

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Congo African Grey ParrotTimneh African Grey Parrot5Congo African Grey (P. erithacus erithacus)-Average 12- 14 inches in length-Predominantly grey -Black Beak -Bright Red tail feathers

Timneh African Grey - (P. erithacus timneh)-Predominantly grey-Slightly smaller at 9-11 inches in length-Lighter colored beak-Darker maroon colored tail feathers

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6endemic to primary and secondary rainforest of West and Central Africa

7BEHAVIORHighly intelligentRemarkable cognitive abilitiesDuplicate human speechBond to one personCan be temperamental and neurotic

7Require constant stimulation

Cognitive abilities on par with that of a small child

Begin talking around one year of age, some never talk

Not only parrot capable of speech but

Greys have an uncanny ability to mimic human speech-wide variety of sounds with amazing accuracy

Generally bond to just one person-very jealous-tend to be shy or timid around strangers Congos in particular

Can be neurotic and temperamental behavioral issues when boredfeather plucking 8

8Examples of feather plucking

Chest onlyMore advanced, full body9BRAIN SIMILARITIES

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Parrots, hummingbirds AND songbirdsSimilarity of the structures more important than their location in the brain:Circuitry (internal structures) -appears to be a fundamental feature -contributes to the production of:1) complex cognitive functions 2) possibly to the associated experience of higher-level consciousness10

DR. IRENE M. PEPPERBERG

Brandeis UniversityProfessor of psychology Research scientistHarvard UniversityLecturerMore than 30 years experienceFundamentals of animal communicationFirst to work with non-humansAfrican Grey Parrots Cognitive and communicative abilities

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Animal cognition, language, communication-specifically with African Grey Parrots to determine their cognitive and communicative abilities-compare their abilities with those of great apes, marine mammals, and young childrenWorked intensively with a Alex (Arthur (Wort), Griffin)-set out to show that their vocal behavior has many of the characteristics of human language

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11Alex, Arthur, Griffin12

ALEX1976-2007

Avian Learning ExperimentRandomly chosenCentral subject of studiesEmotional and intellectual equivalent of a human child

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Alex = Avian Learning Experiment-Central subject of Pepperbergs studies-Purchased at pet store in Chicago in 1977 (randomly)Previously believed that needed a large primate brain to solve complex problemsParrots merely mimickingEmotional/Intellectual equivalent human child-Language abilities of two-year-Problem solving ability of five-year-150+ words -Identify 50 objects-Recognize quantities up to six, including zero-Could distinguish seven colors and five shapes-Understood several concepts of size and positionUnfortunately, his full potential was not realized by the time he died on Sepetember 6, 2007

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Alex in color id and number selection exp.14

Grey Parrots Do Not Always Parrot: The Roles of Imitation and Phonological Awareness in the Creation of New Labels From Existing Vocalizations

Brandeis University Department of PsychologyDr. Irene M. Pepperberg200714PURPOSE - understands that his labels are comprised of individual units that can be recombined in new ways to create a novel referential vocalization. That he can:-uses English labels referentially-understands how labels created from independent soundssounds ->words -> phrases

15THE MODEL/RIVAL TECHNIQUETwo trainersInstructorModel/RivalStudent must reproduce correct behaviorPhonemes

15Two Trainers:-One to give instructions-One to model both correct and incorrect responses-Also acts as the student's rival for the trainer's attentionPhonemes- sounds that comprise words - hoped could conceptually relate an English written word with the spoken word.16

VIDEO

The Model/Rival TechniqueExtraordinary Animals - Parrot Geniushttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AzKcaaRu8iE

16Reason for use of video-to show clear example of M/R Technique, easier to understand this way

VIDEO @ 7:25http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AzKcaaRu8iE

Briefly summarize video afterwards-You can see that..

17SUBJECTSArthur, age 3 1/2One year of M/R trainingFour referential labelsAlex, age 27Twenty-six years of M/R trainingLarge variety of labels

17Could identify, request, refuse, categorize, quantify large number of objects

18PROCEDUREPrevious Model/Rival Technique trainingBirds trained on the new word spool and its meaningAudio taped with microphoneTranslated into sonograms

18Arthur 19RESULTSBoth learned to say spool to refer to wooden or plastic bobbinsjust got there in different ways!Arthur:whistle + /p/ + vowel sounds = whistle-p-oolAlex:/s/ + pause + wool = s-wooleventually became spool19after one year of ocassional use, he spontaneously produced the word spool no intermediary formsoddly Alex never knew the sound /sp/20SONOGRAM

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Physical representations of sound (image)Used to identify phonetic sounds-analyze the cries of animalLook different

21Why have birds developed this ability?21Many scientists believe that this developed in order to attract more/better mates (Sexy Songs)Not just parrots mimic (many species of song bird)Vocal learning (different from auditory learning) produce actual sound being heardDog may learn a command (stay), but will never say it backNext experiment provides some evidence

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Vocal Performance Influences Female Response to Male Bird Song: An Experimental Test

by Barbara Ballentine, Jermey Hymen and Stephen NowickiDuke University Department of Biology200422PURPOSE - Provide evidence that female Swamp Sparrow uses vocal performance to:assess the quality of a potential mate that the ability of a male to sing more challenging or sexy song is indicator to the female of male condition

23PROCEDURECaptured Swamp SparrowsWide variety of males songs recordedvaried in quality trill rate used as point of referencePlayed repeatedly for femalesreactions documented

2334 male Swamp Sparrows10 female Swamp SparrowsCaptured in Crawford County, PennsylvaniaSongs recorded from males-both high and low quality-Trill shake, alternation between low and high notes (PLAY)Played repeatedly for femalesReactions were documented over two day period

24TRILL RATE

24Variation in song more appealing!Trill rate measured in terms of number of syllables produced per second-3 song types from one sparrowtwo, three and four distinct tones respectively-each comprising a single, repeatable syllable25RESULTSSexy Songs are better songs!

Complexity = Virility = Fertility

25Verified that songs of the more exceptionally talented males preferred by the females -Females prefer high-performance song typesSupports hypothesis that females Swamp Sparrows may use vocal performance to asses males in context of mate choiceExemplifying the main purpose of a good speaker/singer-difficulty may be determined by complexity as well as volume-likely reflects on future paternity volume of male-corresponds with mating preferences in several species26CONCLUSION26

Make more copies! Advanced behavior Not uniquely human Dependent on learned experience Noises of purpose and meaning Not just parroting!

Happens in several languagesProve imitation is a complex/advanced behavior worthy of further investigationNot just Parroting, but an advanced learning skill

27POSSIBILITIESModel/Rival TechniqueAutistic ChildrenLanguageNumerical conceptsEmpathyCommunicative competence in othersReconsideration of evolutionary pathsRobotics Technology

27Questioning general evolutionCommunicative competence in special needs peopleSome researchers believe that M/R -promise for teaching autistic -other learning-disabled children difficulty learning languagenumerical concepts empathy*Training with kids already exceeded expectations.28ALEXS LEGACY

28Based out of Brandeis in Waltham, MassGoals:-support research -expand the base of knowledge of cognitive/communicative abilities of parrots -reinforce intelligent beingsFindings will be used to encourage -responsible ownership of parrots-conservation and preservation of parrots in the wild-veterinary research into the psychological diseases and care of these birdsMemory of Alex will live on-accomplish its mission to improve the lives of all parrots worldwide

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2930REFERENCESBallantine B, Hyman J, Nowicki S. 2004. Vocal performance influences female response to male bird song: An Experimental Test . Behavioral Ecology. Vol. 15 1:163-168.

Jarvis ED. 2007. Neural systems for vocal learning in birds and humans: a synopsis. Journal of Ornithology. 48:35-44.

Jarvis ED. 2006. Evolution of vocal learning systems in birds and humans. Kaas J, editor. Evolutions of Nervous Systems. 2:213-228.

Jarvis ED. 2006. Selection for and against vocal learning in birds and mammals. Ornithological Science. 5:5-14.

Pepperberg IM. 1994. Vocal learning in grey parrots (Psittacus erithacus): effects of social interaction, reference, and context. The Auk. 111(2):300-313.

Pepperberg IM. 2007. Grey parrots do not always parrot: the roles of imitation and phonological awareness in the creation of new labels from existing vocalizations. Language Sciences 29: 1-13.

Pepperberg IM. 2002. Cognitive and communicative abilities in grey parrots. Current Directions of Psychological Directions. Vol 2, No 3 83-87.

Phan ML, Pyette CL, Vicario, DS. 2006. Early auditory experience generates long-lasting memories that may subserve vocal learning in songbirds. PNAS 4: 1088-1093.

The Alex Foundation [Internet]. The Alex Foundation Research Publications: 2009 [cited March 25, 2010]. Available at http://www.alexfoundation.org/support_research.html.

YouTube [Internet]. Extraordinary Animals Parrot Genius: 2009 [cited April 3, 2010]. Available at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AzKcaaRu8iE.

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