African Gray Parrots 4 Ants 6 Bottle-Nosed Dolphins 8 Chimpanzees 10 Crows 12 Dogs 14 Elephants 16 Octopuses 18 Pigs 20 Raccoons 22 Rats 24 Squirrels 26 Fact Sheet 28 Glossary 30 For More Information 31 Index 32 About the Author 32 TABLE OF CONTENTS
Alex an African gray parrot could say and understand 150 words Alex talked with people and used words correctly He asked for food or toys and said no when he did not want to do something Sometimes he chewed important papers or knocked over a cup Then he would lower his head and say I’m sorry He told his owner You be good I love you Alex also made up words His word for apple was ban erry He thought apples tasted like bananas and looked similar to big cherries African gray parrots are one of the smartest known birds They learn from people and from other parrots They can name colors and shapes and count corners on objects They do this as well as some young children Alex was shown a green cup and a green key When asked What’s same he said color When asked What’s different he said shape His answers show that he understood the words He was not just copying sounds If an African gray parrot sees an object and someone then covers it Wild African gray parrots make their nests high up in trees AFRICAN GRAY PARROTS CREATE NEW WORDS 1 4
the parrot understands the object is still there They can watch a person put two types of food into two cups They remember which cup has each type of food If a scientist removes the food from one cup a parrot picks the cup that still has food These behaviors show intelligence African gray parrots have excellent memories so they learn easily They can learn an amazing amount partly because they live so long A healthy happy African gray parrot can live up to 70 years in captivity They also live in the African tropics and travel in large noisy flocks THINK ABOUT IT Reread this section about African gray parrots There are many examples of intelligence Which examples do you find most interesting Explain 150 Number of words Alex the African gray parrot could understand Parrots understand words and can speak to people They show the intelligence of a 3 5-year-old child They have excellent memories and learn easily African gray parrots can solve problems African gray parrots use their beaks to open hard objects such as nuts 5
