Learning ability and performance

Learning ability has helped birds become one of the most successful wild animals, and is an important key to birds becoming excellent pets.

Owners of birds may be fascinated to learn that those physical talents so admired in the wild, are only part of birds' capabilities. The other part-personality, emotions, behavior, attitude-has to do with their minds. Birds are smart animals. (This conflicts with the insulting remark in which someone might be referred to as a ''bird brain".)

Maybe in the past birds have been considered to be of low intellect since their brain is tiny and notably backward in development of the cortex.

More talent than might be imagined.

However, "birds have demonstrated in test after test that they are capable of highly intelligent behavior, sometimes surpassing the abilities of mammals with greatly superior cortical development.''

Observing birds' behavior in the wild forecasts their attitude and actions in captivity.

Learning starts for the baby bird before he leaves the nest. Even the short period living in a nest with other babies teaches a type of community living. Also, small nests forces close living with other birds, which means learning rules of behavior.

School is short. Birds must learn from their parents quickly. Within two weeks after being hatched baby robins will leave their nests-not much time until they graduate to test their knowledge in the wild. After that, it's learn from good and bad experiences, trial and error and association with other birds. Sometimes there is no second chance.