Secret of parrot intelligence revealed

The secret of why parrots are the brains of the bird world may have been discovered.

Neuroscientists in Canada believe they have identified the neural circuit underlying intelligence in birds

. example of a "convergent evolution" between the brains of birds and primates, with the potential to provide insights into the neural basis of human intelligence.

Dr. Cristian Gutierrez-Ibanez, Postdoctoral Fellow in the Department of Psychology at the University of Alberta said: "A region of the brain that plays a major role in the intelligence of primates s & # 39; 39, calls the Pontic kernels.

"This structure transfers information between the two largest brain regions, the cortex and the cerebellum, allowing order processing and more sophisticated behavior.

"In humans and primates, pontine nuclei are large compared to other mammals, and that makes sense given our cognitive abilities."

He explained that birds have very small pontine nuclei. Instead, they have a similar structure called Medial Spiral Core, or SpM, which has similar connectivity.

Located in a different part of the brain, the SpM is doing the same thing as the Pontic nuclei, circulating information between the cortex and

The study's coauthor, Professor Doug Wylie, said, "This Loop between the cortex and the cerebellum is important for planning and performing sophisticated behaviors. "

Using samples of 98 birds from the largest collection of bird brains, including chickens With parrots and owls, scientists studied the brains of birds, comparing the relative size of the SpM with the rest of the brain.

They determined that parrots have a much larger SpM than

Dr. Gutierrez-Ibanez said, "The SpM is very large among parrots."

"It is actually two to five times larger in parrots than in other birds, such as chickens 19659002]" Independently, parrots evolved an enlarged area that connects the cortex and cerebellum, similar to primates . This is another fascinating example of convergence between parrots and primates.

"It starts with sophisticated behaviors, such as the use of tools and self-awareness, and can also be seen in the brain. The more we look at the brains, the more we see similarities. "

Next, the research team hopes to take a closer look at SPM among parrots, to understand what types of information go in and why.

Dr. Gutierrez-Ibanez said," This could be an excellent way to study how the similar process, based on pontines, occurs in humans. "

" This could give us a way to better understand the functioning of our human brains. "[19659002] were published in Scientific Reports.