Parrots are not just mimicking words—they use proper names like humans to identify individuals

Like many animals, parrots make sounds that suggest they are talking with each other, maybe even calling out to a specific parrot. But do they truly have names in the same way people do? To find out, Lauryn Benedict, a biology professor at the University of Northern Colorado, didn't set up shop in the tropics to record parrot chatter, as they've done in the past. She instead found birds who spoke her language—birds that live with humans and mimic what they hear, including people's names.

Research roundup: 7 cool science stories we almost missed

Sperm gets lost in space; raccoons solve puzzles; the physics of folding a crepe; and more.

Bird brains

A kea parrot in New Zealand learned to drag traffic cones onto a highway so cars would stop and humans would feed it. That sent me down a rabbit hole on how we actually measure bird intelligence.

Chimpanzees Are Really Into Crystals

In an attempt to understand our own fascination with the shiny minerals, researchers gave some to chimps.

Baby chicks pass the ‘bouba-kiki’ test, challenging a theory of language evolution

Newborn chicks connect sounds with shapes just like humans, suggesting deep evolutionary roots of the “bouba-kiki” effect

Watch Kanzi the bonobo pretend to have a tea party

“Kanzi is able to generate an idea of this pretend object and at the same time know it’s not real.”...

Meet Veronika, the tool-using cow

Veronika uses sticks to scratch herself, suggesting scientists have underestimated cow cognition.

These dogs eavesdrop on their owners to learn new words

“Under the right conditions, some dogs present behaviors strikingly similar to those of young children.”...

Swarm behaviour - Wikipedia