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Calling someone a ‘birdbrain’ is supposed to be an insult. But many birds are a far brighter than we give them credit for. In particular, the parrot singing and chattering in its cage may be far more aware of what is happening than you realise. And if you love it enough, it may even save your life, which is precisely what happened recently to Mr Kurkul, a Russian interpreter living in London. His pet parrot Kuzya’s quick response prevented a burglary.

Parrot burglar alarm

Kuzya has always been allowed to wander freely in the home and has a very close bond with his owner. Mr Kurkul said that he follows him around the house just like a dog. It is no wonder then that he sounded the alarm when, in the middle of the night someone attempted to break in. His shriek of panic was deafening and very effectively sent the burglars scurrying away before they could take anything.

Parrot intelligence

But you may argue that there is nothing all that special about this story. After all what animal doesn’t react in some way to danger. But Kuzya is not the only pet parrot to have displayed surprisingly intelligent behaviour. Parrots’ ability to mimic language is very well known, but people don’t realise that they are also capable of understanding what they are saying. Parrots can choose words and sentences to answer questions or respond to specific situations. Kuzya may not have been reacting merely from instinct. In all likelihood he was well aware that his shriek would arouse attention.

Alex the parrot

There have been several studies on the intelligence of African Grey parrots in particular. The most famous of these is the case of Alex who appeared in several BBC nature programmes. He was part of a research study at Harvard University and spent 30 years interacting with and learning from his owner, Dr. Irene Pepperberg. Alex could identify specific objects, naming their colour and shape, and after touching them with is beak, he could tell you what they were made from. He would also tell other parrots to speak better if they were mumbling.

Sadly Alex died young at the age 31 and is now famous for his dying words ‘Be good. See you tomorrow. I love you.’

African Grays are endangered because they get capture in the wild for people to keep as pets. It is worth remembering both Kuzya and Alex the next time you pass a parrot sitting in a cage.

Tags: pet care, Pets & Pet Care