Male Cockatoo Uses External Objects to Get its Food

A cockatoo has surprised researchers displaying tool craftsmanship, as the species is not known to use tools in the wild.

A captive Goffin's cockatoo named Figaro that lives near Vienna was observed using tools to rake in food objects that are out of its reach. Researchers from the Universities of Oxford, UK, and Vienna filmed Figaro using tools like splinters cut out of wooden beams and twigs to fetch the nuts placed on the other side of its enclosure.

For the first time, researchers have recorded a cockatoo making new tools. Experts first noticed Figaro's tool-using skill while he was playing with a small stone. At one point, he inserted the pebble through the cage mesh and dropped it at a place out of his reach from the enclosure. His initial attempts to get the pebble using his claw were unsuccessful, after which he fetched a small stick from the aviary floor and started fishing for the stone by holding the stick in his beak.

In order to investigate Figaro's tool-using capability, researchers conducted a series of experiments placing a nut in the spot where the pebble had been placed. They were surprised to see that Figaro was biting a large splinter and cut it out of an aviary wooden beam. Once the splinter was cut to an appropriate size and shape, Figaro used it as a raking tool to get the nut.

Experts repeated the tests across 10 trials for a period of three days. Figaro was successful in every trial by effectively making use of a new tool or modifying the old one to obtain the nut.

"It was already a surprise to see him use a tool, but we certainly did not expect him to make one by himself. From that time on, Figaro was successful on obtaining the nut every single time we placed it there, nearly each time making new tools. On one attempt he used an alternative solution, breaking a side arm off a branch and modifying the leftover piece to the appropriate size for raking," lead author of the study Dr Alice Auersperg, of the University of Vienna, said in a statement.

It is not clear how Figaro learned to make and use the tools. But researchers believe that curious, large-brained, problem-solvers might have the ability to make and use tools, even if they belong to a species of non-habitual tool-users.

"Even though Figaro is still alone in the species and among parrots in showing this capacity, his feat demonstrates that tool craftsmanship can emerge from intelligence not specialized for tool use. Importantly, after making and using his first tool, Figaro seemed to know exactly what to do, and showed no hesitation in later trials," Professor Alex Kacelnik, one of the authors of the study from Oxford University, said.

Kacelnik has earlier led studies on tools usage by New Caledonian crows. One of the crows named Betty was noticed fashioning hooks out of wire to obtain food that was out of reach. These crows are known to use and make tools in the wild, but Betty's form of hook making has never been heard before.

"We confess to be still struggling to identify the cognitive operations that make these deeds possible. Figaro, and his predecessor Betty, may help us unlock many unknowns in the evolution of intelligence," said Kacelnik.

The findings of the study are published in the journal Current Biology.

To look at how Figaro makes use of his tool, click here.