IQ Competition Between Humans and Parrots... Who Is the Winner? [Reading Science]

Sydney Residents Troubled by Sulphur-crested Cockatoos Opening Trash Bin Lids
Residents Use Bricks and More to Block, but Birds Open All with High Intelligence
Creative Ideas Like Shoe Wedges and Tied Water Bottles Employed
Scientists Say "Inter-species Innovation Arms Race... Both Adapt Well"

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Bong-su] "A war has broken out between humans and parrots." Residents of Sydney, Australia, are locked in a battle of wits with cunning parrots that open trash bin lids to get to food no matter what. Scientists are observing this competition between humans and parrots with great interest, calling it an 'interspecies innovation arms race.'

According to the British newspaper The Guardian on the 13th (local time), a recent paper from the Max Planck Institute for Animal Behavior in Germany was published in the international academic journal Current Biology, detailing this phenomenon. According to the paper, sulphur-crested cockatoos native to Sydney and other parts of Australia have been opening trash bin lids to find bread crumbs, causing headaches for residents. These sulphur-crested cockatoos, which can grow up to 50cm in size, skillfully open trash bin lids using their beaks and wings, and this behavior has spread widely. Before 2018, this was observed in only three areas, but by the end of 2019, it was seen in 44 areas. These birds are intelligent enough to dance to music. However, they are notorious among Australian residents for growling and acting arrogantly.

To prevent these parrots from raiding trash bins, residents near Sydney have devised as many as 52 different types of locking mechanisms. To verify this, the research team investigated 3,283 food waste bins placed in four suburban areas of Sydney. The results showed that more than half of the food waste bins had various devices designed by residents to prevent parrots from opening the lids. Additionally, in a survey, 172 residents from 51 areas responded that they were making efforts to stop parrots from opening the lids.

The residents' challenge was to devise a method that allows easy opening and emptying of the lids when the garbage truck arrives but prevents parrots from opening them. Initially, they used methods like placing bricks or other heavy objects on the lids. However, parrots quickly learned to push these objects away, rendering the method ineffective. One resident explained, "Bricks were useful for a short time, but the parrots were too smart." Later, a popular method involved inserting the sole of a soft sneaker into the hinge of the trash bin lid. This allowed the lid to open when the bin was turned upside down by the garbage truck but made it impossible for the parrots to open it with their strength. Some residents tied water-filled bottles on top of the trash bin lids, while others installed spikes around the edges.

A member of the research team said, "This study seriously examined how two species, humans and parrots, change their behavior while engaging in an 'interspecies innovation arms race' over trash bins," adding, "Parrots have large brains and high sociality, allowing them to adapt excellently by learning to live alongside humans, and humans have done the same."