When we attached tiny, backpack-like tracking devices to five Australian magpies for a pilot study, we didn't expect to discover an entirely new social behavior rarely seen in birds.
goal was to learn more about the movement and social dynamics of these highly intelligent birds, and to test these new, durable and reusable devices. Instead, the birds outsmarted us.
As our new research paper explains, the magpies began showing evidence of cooperative "rescue" behavior to help each other remove the tracker.
While we're familiar with magpies being intelligent and social creatures, this was the first instance we knew of that showed this type of seemingly altruistic behavior: helping another member of the group without getting an immediate, tangible reward. Researchers.
No comments:
Post a Comment