Ravens are already known to be smart and even cunning. A new study has claimed that ravens are even smarter than known.
The study published in Science Journal claimed that ravens use their past experience to make pans ahead. They also exhibit self control in the process, which is quite noticed in apes and humans, the study said.
The researchers said that there was vast difference between apes and ravens. They said that the last time they both shared a common ancestor was about 320 million years ago. Even then, the ravens show similar skills as that of apes.
For the study, five adult ravens were presented with a selection of objects. Some of them could be bartered with a person for treats, and others could open a puzzle box with a treat hidden inside. The researchers said that they found that the ravens quickly learned that they could trade certain tokens for treats, or use the correct tool. They also found that the ravens began saving tokens and stones for using them when the next opportunity to trade or open a box was presented.
The researchers then looked into whether the ravens could remember how their ‘boring’ objects worked, first after 15 minutes and again after 17 hours. Even though they had to wait long hours, they were better at planning future trades than orangutans, bonobos, and chimpanzees. The researchers point out that the ravens matched apes at planning and using tools.
The second test, the researchers looked at if the ravens had self control. The ravens were presented with a number of objects on a tray like box-opening stones, bartering tokens, miscellaneous items and a treat that was subpar compared to the treat in the box. Instead of choosing subpar treat, the ravens opted to use the tokens and tools to get the superior treat from the box.