Photo: Lukas Schulze / AP
Biologists have found the ravens one of the main properties of consciousness — the ability to evaluate the thought processes of competitors. The results of the research, the authors published in the journal Nature Communications, and briefly reported in a press release, University of Houston, posted on the website EurekAlert!
Experimental design biologists
Image: T. Bugnyar
Biologists have observed crows, guarding their caches of food from other ravens across the wall with the bolt and a small hole. In the case where the shutter was opened and the bird saw another bird, first showed signs of anxiety and guarded his stash.
When the shutter was closed and the hole is opened, so that the bird could not see the other animal, but heard him, Raven still showed anxiety. In the third test, when the bolt and hole were closed, the bird showed no concern even when I heard other animal.
Research scientists shows that crows behave differently not only when they see their competitors, but also when assuming that the latter can watch them. This behavior is one of the manifestations of consciousness and human nature, and is believed to biologists, chimpanzees. Separate signs of consciousness (samoupravlenie) characteristic and also the dolphins, probably elephants.
