> advanced animals are capable of a "theory of mind"
Since we got a bird 8 years ago, my SO has been feeding me a steady stream of science books about birds so I can entertain her with random tidbits and interesting facts.
Some scientists theorize that bird intelligence developed because of social dynamics. Birds, you see, often mate for life. But they also cheat. A lot. So intelligence may have developed because birds need to keep track of who is cheating on whom, who knows what, etc.
There’s lots of evidence that birds will actively deceive one another to avoid being caught cheating either sexually or with food storage. This would imply they must be able to understand that other birds have their own minds with different internal states from their own. Quite fascinating.
Fun to observe this behavior in my own bird, too.
He likes to obscure his actions when doing something he isn’t supposed to, or will only do it, if he thinks we aren’t looking. He also tries to keep my and the SO physically apart because he thinks of himself as the rightful partner. Complete with jealous tantrums when we kiss.
Yes, 100% agreed. In the human linage, deception long predates language, so it makes a lot of sense that birds get up to the same thing.
If you're interested in bird cognition, I strongly recommend Mind of the Raven. It's a very personal book by someone who did field experiments with ravens and richly conveys the challenges of understanding what they're up to. I read it because I became pals with a raven whose territory I lived in for a while. Unlike most birds I've dealt with, it was pretty clear to me that the raven and I were both thinking about what the other was thinking.
Since we got a bird 8 years ago, my SO has been feeding me a steady stream of science books about birds so I can entertain her with random tidbits and interesting facts.
Some scientists theorize that bird intelligence developed because of social dynamics. Birds, you see, often mate for life. But they also cheat. A lot. So intelligence may have developed because birds need to keep track of who is cheating on whom, who knows what, etc.
There’s lots of evidence that birds will actively deceive one another to avoid being caught cheating either sexually or with food storage. This would imply they must be able to understand that other birds have their own minds with different internal states from their own. Quite fascinating.
Fun to observe this behavior in my own bird, too.
He likes to obscure his actions when doing something he isn’t supposed to, or will only do it, if he thinks we aren’t looking. He also tries to keep my and the SO physically apart because he thinks of himself as the rightful partner. Complete with jealous tantrums when we kiss.
Book sauce: The Genius of Birds, great read