Natural History Wanderings

Just How Smart are New Caldonian Crows

Crows are among the smartest of animals.  They not only use tools, they even make tools.  Here are a few stories about Crow smarts that have appeared the last several years.  The last story gives us some clues as why the Crows may be so smart.

Clever Crows Use Tools in New Way
Wired Science story about New Caledonian crows using tools in a flexible way and the possibility that they may  also be able to use them sequentially.

Crows Put Tools to Use to Access a Nutritious Diet
N.Y. Times article By SINDYA N. BHANOO on how New Caldonian Crows use twigs as tools to get beetle larvae out of tree trunks

Crow Makes Wire Hook to Get Food
National Geographic article on New Caldonian Crows bend wire to make hook to use as a tool

Crows Have Human-Like Intelligence
National Geographic article elaborating on skills and behaviors that document Crow intelligence

Tiny “Crow-Cams” Capture Tool Use in Wild Birds
National Geographic article on use of small camera to document crows using  tools.

With all these studies and stories about how smart New Caldonian Crows are you might ask why?  The answer may well be due to the extensive parenting the young are getting read about it in the NY Times: Nurturing Nests Lift These Birds to a Higher Perch