Happy Kaamatan and Gawai 2024

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

To all Sabahans and Sarawakians, Happy Kaamatan and Gawai! 

 

We knew crows were smart but it turns out they can also do math. Well, they can count. 

 

And they do it out loud. 

 

According to a study from the University of Tübingen in Germany which reveals that crows caw as they count, producing a specific and deliberate number of sounds in response to visual and auditory cues. 

 

To be clear, quite a few animals – even honeybees – understand numbers, but counting out loud requires not only that understanding, but purposeful vocal control with the aim of communication. 

 

"Producing a specific number of vocalizations with purpose requires a sophisticated combination of numerical abilities and vocal control", write neuroscientists Diana A Liao, Katharina F Brecht, Lena Veit and Andreas Nieder in a scientific paper titled "Crows 'count' the number of self-generated vocalizations" published in Science, May 23, 2024, Vol. 384, Issue 6698, pp. 874-877. 

 

Numerical ability has been increasingly identified in non-human animals. Animals as diverse as birds and bees have been shown to be able to “count” and they can discriminate among different numbers of objects or between greater or fewer objects. 

 

The researchers tested whether crows, which are known for both their numerical skills and high level of cognition, could use vocalizations to count out loud, a skill that is challenging even for young humans. The crows flexibly produced between one and four vocalizations for corresponding cues associated with numerical values. Furthermore, they used different calls for different numbers.  

 

The researchers trained three carrion crows (Corvus corone) to respond to symbols or audio cues by cawing a specific number of times, between one and four. When the crows were done, they pecked a target to indicate completion. 

 

"The findings suggest that the birds are capable of using a non-symbolic approximate number system, showing a level of vocal control that mirrors the early counting skills of human toddlers", they write.