It sounds like the plot of a sci-fi film: A lineage of dinosaurs survives the asteroid and goes on to evolve ultra-high intelligence.
The curious fact is, however, that it’s not science fiction at all; it’s exactly what happened. Birds are literally dinosaurs: the one group of dinosaurs that didn’t go extinct 66 million years ago. And some birds - most notably the corvids and parrots - possess cognitive abilities that rival those of monkeys and apes.
In this post, we’ll explore some of the fascinating questions raised by this strange fact:
How much of the primate cognitive toolkit can natural selection squeeze into a tiny bird brain?
How did animals separated from us by hundreds of millions of years of evolution end up with so many similar mental abilities?
Can the same abilities be implemented in different ways in different brains?
The answers to these questions could change not only how you see the creatures outside your window but also how you see evolution, intelligence, and the relationship of the mind to the brain.