Crows Rival Monkeys in Cognitive Capacity
Abstract The present study compares the ‘bandwidth of cognition’ between crows and primates. Working memory is the ability to maintain and manipulate information over short periods of time – a core component of cognition. The capacity of working memory is tightly limited, in humans correlated with i...
| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Nature Portfolio
2017-08-01
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| Series: | Scientific Reports |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-017-09400-0 |
| _version_ | 1818835110800130048 |
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| author | Dmitry Balakhonov Jonas Rose |
| author_facet | Dmitry Balakhonov Jonas Rose |
| author_sort | Dmitry Balakhonov |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract The present study compares the ‘bandwidth of cognition’ between crows and primates. Working memory is the ability to maintain and manipulate information over short periods of time – a core component of cognition. The capacity of working memory is tightly limited, in humans correlated with individual intelligence and commonly used synonymously with cognitive capacity. Crows have remarkable cognitive skills and while birds and mammals share neural principles of working memory, its capacity has not been tested in crows. Here we report the performance of two carrion crows on a working memory paradigm adapted from a recent experiment in rhesus monkeys. Capacity of crows is remarkably similar to monkeys and estimated at about four items. In both species, the visual hemifields show largely independent capacity. These results show that crows, like primates evolved a high-capacity working memory that reflects the result of convergent evolution of higher cognitive abilities in both species. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-19T02:45:30Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-aa142623d1b34aaba2c1837194454c4f |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2045-2322 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-19T02:45:30Z |
| publishDate | 2017-08-01 |
| publisher | Nature Portfolio |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Scientific Reports |
| spelling | doaj.art-aa142623d1b34aaba2c1837194454c4f2022-12-21T20:38:54ZengNature PortfolioScientific Reports2045-23222017-08-01711810.1038/s41598-017-09400-0Crows Rival Monkeys in Cognitive CapacityDmitry Balakhonov0Jonas Rose1Dept. of Psychology, Ruhr-University BochumDept. of Psychology, Ruhr-University BochumAbstract The present study compares the ‘bandwidth of cognition’ between crows and primates. Working memory is the ability to maintain and manipulate information over short periods of time – a core component of cognition. The capacity of working memory is tightly limited, in humans correlated with individual intelligence and commonly used synonymously with cognitive capacity. Crows have remarkable cognitive skills and while birds and mammals share neural principles of working memory, its capacity has not been tested in crows. Here we report the performance of two carrion crows on a working memory paradigm adapted from a recent experiment in rhesus monkeys. Capacity of crows is remarkably similar to monkeys and estimated at about four items. In both species, the visual hemifields show largely independent capacity. These results show that crows, like primates evolved a high-capacity working memory that reflects the result of convergent evolution of higher cognitive abilities in both species.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-017-09400-0 |
| spellingShingle | Dmitry Balakhonov Jonas Rose Crows Rival Monkeys in Cognitive Capacity Scientific Reports |
| title | Crows Rival Monkeys in Cognitive Capacity |
| title_full | Crows Rival Monkeys in Cognitive Capacity |
| title_fullStr | Crows Rival Monkeys in Cognitive Capacity |
| title_full_unstemmed | Crows Rival Monkeys in Cognitive Capacity |
| title_short | Crows Rival Monkeys in Cognitive Capacity |
| title_sort | crows rival monkeys in cognitive capacity |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-017-09400-0 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT dmitrybalakhonov crowsrivalmonkeysincognitivecapacity AT jonasrose crowsrivalmonkeysincognitivecapacity |