This book straddles an interesting gap - books about birds and books about research. Given that I love both, it's not hard to imagine that I would love and love this book. I took it up and put it down numerous times - it requires thinking, so it was not what I first thought of as a casual read, and I had to be ready to give it more time (I often have fiction and non-fiction books going at the same time). So I have been buried in it for some time, but only recently have I devoted the attention that I feel it requires.

The author covers a lot of ground here, personally, her chapter on how birds learn/know how to migrate could be a standalone piece of work, and stands out, but so do parts of much of this. Read this if you love birds, but be ready to give of it your full attention, you won't be disappointed.

Suddenly the shadow of a hawk passed over, and the blackbirds exploded upward, almost as one, and swirled away. I watched the whole shimmering sheet of them dark against the sky, wheeling, twisting, eddying in intricate movements with the cohesion of a single organism…

I didn’t know much about birds; this book has given me a new respect for them. It’s dry at times, but contains a lot of interesting information. It would really have benefited from including some photos, though.

Checked this one out from the library on a whim and I am really glad I did. It talks about a lot of different species of birds and the different forms of intelligence that we have studied. It goes into clear and interesting detail about the different studies scientists have done so that the reader can really understand why the scientists are making the claims they are about that species' capabilities. The descriptions of the studies were my favorite part!

Why did I read a book like ‘The Genius of Birds' by Jennifer Ackerman? I walk a few times a week for exercise. At first, I had earbuds for listening to music and audiobooks jammed into my ears most of the time because I assumed it would be a little dull walking. But eventually I realized I was hearing birdsong all over the place. I wondered what kind of birds were making those sounds. I identified:

https://youtu.be/LfMsUuU9KtQ

and

https://youtu.be/fpTsnpsJJ2k

and

https://youtu.be/ZNsF_tyHiUY

and

https://youtu.be/PkOnpk8Wmow

and maybe

https://youtu.be/umFe7NLfQFw


and day, I saw a hawk sitting on top of a tall evergreen tree; the hawk caused a birdsong pandemonium, much like this video:

https://youtu.be/nOeKqvop6rw


and the following sound was one I heard all of the time despite that I am a mile away from Elliot Bay:

https://youtu.be/A-79gD1gMco


Who were these little noisy fellows (some not so little)? Why so noisy? I live in a medium-sized city with chunks of tamed parkland and an occasional polluted stream around me. How do birds survive in my urban environment? What and who are these birds of all colors and sizes? Crows in particular surround my area, in fact every area I have ever lived on the west coast. Are they the bosses, top of the bird food chain? How do birds sing anyway? What are they thinking? Do they think?

No book about birds can answer every question about birds. An encyclopedia set couldn’t include everything we have seen through millennia about birds. What ‘The Genius of Birds’ explores is primarily what has been discovered about how some birds think and communicate their thoughts, if they have thoughts. If birds have thoughts, what do they think about, and how does it specifically relate to their lives?Jennifer Ackerman discusses some of the testing scientists have devised for observing birds’ thinking behavior. The chapters are:

From Dodo to Crow
The Bird Way
Boffins
Twitter
Four Hundred Tongues
The Bird Artist
A Mapping Mind
Sparrowville


One bird, the New Caledonian crow, is tested frequently because it may be the smartest bird in the world! The book describes the tests the crow passes with ease. It can solve three-step puzzles using tools!

https://youtu.be/LF77qpbvkxo


Scientists have only recently seen with what organ birds use to sing and communicate! The author, Jennifer Ackerman, describes bird vocal chords, recently seen by an MRI. She also discusses various theories of if and why a species of bird devises different tunes and even accents - are songs passed down from parent to child? Or does the knowledge of tunes come along with the baby birds at birth? Is the how of birds that sing and talk related to human brain mechanisms? Are birds actually saying anything intellectually meaningful? Scientists can only make guesses about observed bird sounds and behavior. For instance, why do birds imitate the sounds of other birds, chainsaws, human babies crying and doors opening? Do they sing just to hear themselves, or only to attract mates, or do they also sound off to warn and teach young’uns? Do other species of birds or animals listen for a different bird species’ warnings, or recognize songs as warnings?

https://youtu.be/GpfF1xUqbOE


Some lovely bird tunes:

https://youtu.be/q15dT8h-ORU

https://youtu.be/mSB71jNq-yQ


According to ‘The Genius of Birds’, scientists and amateur birdwatchers have made some fascinating discoveries about bird cognition, culture (omg, birds appear to have culture, and it varies around the world even within the same species!), aesthetics, building skills, mapping talents, and adaptation skills, particular in adapting to us humans. What brain neurons are at work? Are their neurons the same as humans? Do their neurons function like our neurons when doing the same task? Do birds intentionally trick other species of birds and animals and if so, what kind of mental cognition is involved? Can birds connive and scheme? Do birds play around just for fun? She describes the suspected brain talents of various bird species. Her writing is cogent, and she has chosen interesting things to describe to us readers.

Most of what Ackerman discusses is what scientists (professional and amateur) have seen in studies and tests showing what possible cognitive activity is occurring behind the actions different species of birds do under certain circumstances. She describes what bird owners have told about what their pet birds have done (some stories are very funny). This book is interesting, but while fairly comprehensive in some bird brain studies, it left me wanting more. But clearly birds have a working intelligence behind their beautiful eyes!

Thankfully, Ackerman has included sections for Acknowledgements, Notes and Index.

It is an interesting book!


I am not the only one who has wondered what birds do with their lives. People see remarkable bird behavior all of the time once they begin to look. If you want more, gentle reader, Youtube.com is a treasure trove of bird videos and songs.


Speaking of bird behavior and culture:

Dancing birds:

https://youtu.be/wTcfDCjBqV0

https://youtu.be/c2c8IhVRlvo


Pretty bird pretty bird!

https://youtu.be/axa5KI06RDE


Advice to those who want to own birds who can imitate human language: if you do not want guests to hear the things you and your family say, do not say things within the hearing distance of your pet bird. Talking birds can speak VERY clearly, even if it might be only a mindless imitation. And I do think some birds are NOT simply imitating you...they are TALKING. They have feelings. Some like to cuddle and play and do mischievous tricks. They get mad. They pick up on cues from living with people.

Imitating electronics, plus R2D2 gets raped by a budgie:

https://youtu.be/m4ju5Zzv1_0

Talking bird:

https://youtu.be/jXc9ylCXqCw


Some speech might actually mean they have done something and they know how to get to you if they say, “hear me now, b*cth?” They hear and memorize speech from Tv and video games, too, besides from you.

Warning: fowl language, as well as foul

https://youtu.be/b22nUygu7h0


This video, well, idk, it’s just kinda soothing.

https://youtu.be/cnxwsC1RYFY


Alfred Hitchcock was on to something about birds, gentle reader, when he made that movie ‘The Birds.’ This book will give some weight to the idea of no longer using the term “bird brain” to disparage anyone. Wow, birds are cool.