Parrots 'as intelligent' as young children

[Dann Pigdon <dannj@alphalink.com.au>]

Parrots 'as intelligent' as young children
By Kirsten Veness for The World Today

An American scientist says the results of a 29-year study suggest  
parrots could be as intelligent as five-year-old humans.

Brandeis University Professor Irene Pepperberg says her study of Alex,  
an african grey parrot, shows parrots have an impressive intelligence.

"They're about the same intelligence as a five-year-old child but  
their communication skills, at least as far as we've looked at in the  
lab, are only about that of a two-year-old," she said.

"So no long, complicated sentences but the ability to answer the  
questions that we ask."


[more at:]
http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200607/s1693309.htm

Keep in mind this probably refers to American children - in other  
parts of the world the same news item might be titled 'American  
Children Dumb as Parrots'. :)

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Dann Pigdon
GIS / Archaeologist         http://heretichides.soffiles.com
Melbourne, Australia        http://www.geocities.com/dannsdinosaurs
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