

Japan's Keio University scientists have shown that pigeons are able to discriminate video images of themselves, paintings of certain painters (Van Gogh vs Chagall) and more. The video image discrimination ability is higher than that of a 3-year-old child.
Prof. Shigeru Watanabe of Keio University and Tsukuba University graduate student Kohji Toda trained pigeons to discriminate real-time self-image using mirrors as well as videotaped self-image, and proved that pigeons can recognize video images that reflect their movements as self-image.
Self-recognition is found in large primates such as chimpanzees, and recent findings show that dolphins and elephants also have such intelligence. Proving that pigeons also have this ability show that such high intelligence as self-recognition can be seen in various animals, and are not limited to primates and dolphins that have large brains.
Through various experiments, it is known that pigeons have great visual cognitive abilities. At Prof. Shigeru Watanabe's laboratory, pigeons could discriminate paintings of a certain painter (such as Van Gogh) from another painter (such as Chagall). Furthermore, pigeons could discriminate other pigeons individually, and also discriminate stimulated pigeons that were given stimulant drugs from none.
In this experiment, pigeons could discriminate video images that reflect their movements even with a 5-7 second delay from video images that don't reflect their movements. This ability is higher than an average 3-year-olds of humans who have difficulty recognising their self-image with only a 2 second delay.
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