Crows Understand Cause and Effect, Even When the Cause is Hidden | 80beats

For the New Caledonian crow, birdbrain is a misnomer: These members of the corvid family have proved their problem-solving and tool-wielding abilities again and again. The birds may have yet another impressive cognitive capacity, a new study suggests: causal reasoning. The ability to link an event with the mechanism that caused it, even if that mechanism is hidden, is the basis of modern science—and our most basic knowledge of the world around us. If New Caledonian crows are capable of causal reasoning as well, we can better trace and understand...

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Published By: Discover - Wednesday, 19 September