A parrot missing half his beak has become top bird at New Zealand’s Willowbank Wildlife Reserve. Named Bruce, he wins every fight with other kea parrots. He also gets priority access to food.
This observation has made scientists question their ideas about disabilities in animal social groups. Bruce showed that a physical disadvantage doesn’t have to hold an animal back. Sometimes the right moves and a little creativity can make all the difference.
Researchers shared this finding April 20 in Current Biology.
Willowbank’s kea live in a large aviary with trees and a stream. Visitors who stop by often fail to notice the parrots snoozing among the leaves. But when they spot Bruce, they always make the same comment, says behavioral ecologist Alex Grabham: “Look at that poor bird.”
That pity is misguided, says Grabham. He’s part of a team studying kea at the University of Canterbury in Christchurch, New Zealand. That team tracked how Bruce interacted with his flock. (A group of kea is called a circus, reflecting the birds’ pla...
English (US)