Adaptive Numerical Competency In A Food-Hoarding Songbird

Main Category: Biology / Biochemistry
Also Included In: Veterinary
Article Date: 10 Jul 2008 - 1:00 PDT

email to a friend   printer friendly   view / write opinions   rate article

Knowledge of mathematics is thought to distinguish humans from other animals. However, the potential for wild animals to use number discriminations to solve ecological problems is poorly resolved.

We conducted a series of experiments to test whether a food-hoarding songbird, the New Zealand robin Petrocia australis, could discriminate between cache sites containing different numbers of prey.

We found that robins utilize a highly sophisticated number sense to retrieve and pilfer stored food, thus providing a critical link in our understanding of the adaptive significance of numerical competency in untrained wild animals.

Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences

Proceedings B is the Royal Society's flagship biological research journal, dedicated to the rapid publication and broad dissemination of high-quality research papers, reviews and comment and reply papers. The scope of journal is diverse and is especially strong in organismal biology.

Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences