Comments on: Talking Parrot

Talking Parrot

lobstah — Sun, 06 Feb 2005 06:50:42 -0800

The Amazing Einstein This African Grey Parrot was a show stopper on animal Planet's Pet Stars. Lots of other great videos there too

By: Drastic

Drastic — Sun, 06 Feb 2005 07:45:47 -0800

Alex has always been one of my favorite parrots. (Previous discussion here.) He's also an African Grey. If they ever evolve thumbs, we're done for.

By: pookzilla

pookzilla — Sun, 06 Feb 2005 07:52:41 -0800

They are such remarkable animals - not only parrots but birds in general. My grandparents had a budgie that you could have a very limited conversation with. I would love to have a parrot but I worry that it would outlive me. Factoring a parrot into my will is not something I want to try and do.

By: freudianslipper

freudianslipper — Sun, 06 Feb 2005 08:20:15 -0800

i want to take them both home, they are so cute! that parrot definitely was amazing.

By: Sticherbeast

Sticherbeast — Sun, 06 Feb 2005 08:35:58 -0800

I recall a silly and terrific terrific Seed article about an African Grey - was it Alex? it was a parrot that did not trust women - and the conclusion contained therein was that, as awesome as its accomplishments were, people don't need to be tapped on the nose for years to learn the word "pen." At any rate, parrots are great. The only bird I would consider keeping.

By: kingfisher, his musclebound cat

kingfisher, his musclebound cat — Sun, 06 Feb 2005 08:39:16 -0800

The talking and mimicking parrot is fun, but I think the tool-making crow (.mov file) is more fascinating.

By: Eekacat

Eekacat — Sun, 06 Feb 2005 09:29:56 -0800

Holy CRAP!! And that CROW!!!! I've always liked crows, pretty cool birds to have around (not as pets, I mean just in general). kingfisher..... I think they are both fascinating in their own ways. The crow is definitely very cool.

By: SisterHavana

SisterHavana — Sun, 06 Feb 2005 09:56:20 -0800

Pet Star is kind of a guilty pleasure for me. Some of the things those animals can do are amazing.

By: lobstah

lobstah — Sun, 06 Feb 2005 10:21:22 -0800

Crows are very smart...when I was a kid, there was a tame one named "Pepper" that would hang around the schoolyard, flying from shoulder to shoulder ...looking for handouts at lunchtime.

By: Evstar

Evstar — Sun, 06 Feb 2005 10:24:18 -0800

Lots of fun, thanks.

By: Civil_Disobedient

Civil_Disobedient — Sun, 06 Feb 2005 10:44:45 -0800

Direct link. DOWN WITH EMBEDDED VIDEO!

By: Harry

Harry — Sun, 06 Feb 2005 12:32:20 -0800

More animals should learn how to imitate spaceships with lasers. It would save them from extinction.

By: rajbot

rajbot — Sun, 06 Feb 2005 12:51:16 -0800

Crows can learn to mimic human voices. When I was in college, there was a crow that would speak over the Hardee's drive-through intercom and attempt to place an order. It was pretty spooky.

By: GleepGlop

GleepGlop — Sun, 06 Feb 2005 14:08:01 -0800

the lyre bird made me fall off the couch when it mimmicked perfectly any and every sound in its environment to attract a mate. other birds, chainsaws, car alarms, and camera shutters.

By: mdn

mdn — Sun, 06 Feb 2005 15:48:35 -0800

Birds are really amazing to me, too, and I especially love parrots. They are beautiful and alien the way cats are, but at the same time smart and personable the way dogs are* - just very cool creatures. The fact that they seem to have a rather complex brain despite its size is also really interesting on a neurological level. It makes me wonder if we don't misjudge dinosaurs a bit, given that we now think they were more like enormous birds than godzillas... *not that there aren't smart cats and beautiful dogs too, just stereotyping a bit, don't mind me

By: rajbot

rajbot — Sun, 06 Feb 2005 18:46:43 -0800

San Francisco is home to two flocks of feral parrots. Listening to a large flock of parrots chatter and scream is amazing. You can hear them near the Ferry building. A documentary about the parrots called The Wild Parrots of Telegraph Hill is coming out next week (see also the book). You can get a hint of how loud the wild parrots are by watching the trailer for the movie.