Not only is it great for remembering and finding directions, pigeons can also count and compare the number of objects.
This is the conclusion of researchers at the University of Otago (New Zealand) after discovering that pigeons are able to compare the number of objects (maximum 1-9) in each pair of images and arrange them baby to older.
Scientists restarted the experiment used to study the Indian brown monkey in 1998. First, the pigeons were trained to recognize 35 sets of images, each consisting of 3 images, each containing 1 to 3 objects of different sizes, shapes. , and the colors, in ascending order. Pigeons will be rewarded when they peck on an image containing the number of objects in the order of 1 to 3.
Then the scientists gradually increased the difficulty by increasing the number of objects in each image. This time the pictures are divided into pairs, each picture contains 1-9 objects. In this second experiment, the greater the difference between the number of objects in each pair of images, the more precise the pigeons.
From this, the scientists concluded that any color or shape, pigeons can distinguish the number of objects. If they learn that 2 is greater than 1, they may perceive that 8 is greater than 5.
This shows that animals with different brain structures than humans can still perform complex intellectual tasks that only humans previously thought.
