Parrots, known for their impressive intelligence and charming vocal mimicry, have gained popularity as pets in recent decades.
However, these same characteristics that make the birds fascinating to watch can also cause problems. Lack of socialization and proper stimulation can cause parrots to misbehave or, in some cases, even hurt themselves.
Many of these stress-induced destructive behaviors are a by-product of the fact that parrots live in drastically different environments from their natural habitats, where they fly freely among other birds.
A new study now suggests that modern technologies, especially Facebook Messenger video chats, could help these birds regain their social life.
"In the wild, parrots live in flocks and socialize with each other constantly," explains Ilyena Hirskyj-Douglas, associate professor at the University of Glasgow, in a statement.
"As pets, they are often kept alone, which can cause them to develop negative behaviors such as excessive walking or feather plucking."
In the new study, researchers from Northeastern University, MIT and the University of Glasgow decided to see how various species of parrots interacted when placed in brief video calls with each other.
Over the course of three months, the researchers trained nine parrots and their human handlers to use touch-screen tablets and smartphones.
Initially, the birds were trained to associate video calls with a bell. Whenever the bell was rung during the training phase, the bird received a treat.
The handlers, in turn, were trained to end the calls whenever the bird showed signs of stress or discomfort. Once trained, the birds were free to ring the bell on their own initiative.
In doing so, their handlers opened Facebook Messenger and connected them to other birds from around the country involved in the study. They linked the video calls to a bell and gave the birds a treat every time they rang the bell. The parrots could then access Facebook Messenger to make video calls with other birds across the country.
The results were shocking. In almost all cases, the birds' caretakers said that the video calls had improved their well-being. Some of the birds even seem to have learned new skills, such as foraging or improved flight, after watching other birds do it.
Two of the birds, a cockatoo called Ellie and an African gray hen called Cookie, are still calling each other almost a year later.
"This really shows the cognitive complexity of these birds and their ability to express themselves," said Ilyena Hirskyj-Douglas in a statement. "It was very beautiful, those two birds, for me."
Several cases were observed in which the birds imitated each other's behavior. Some would start cleaning themselves after seeing a bird on the other side of the screen doing so. Other times, the birds would "sing" in unison.
In one video, a colorful parrot can be seen anxiously waiting for a call to connect. A large white bird eventually appears on the other end of the call, which causes the red bird to flap its head and chirp with excitement.
In another case, a male macaw in a video call with another macaw would utter the phrase "Hello! Come here!" If the second bird left the screen, the vocalizing bird would quickly ring a bell, which the keepers interpreted as a request from the bird to its friend to return to the screen.
"Some strong social dynamics began to emerge," explains Rébecca Kleinberger, an assistant professor at Northeastern, in the press release.
Interestingly, parrots seemed substantially less interested in video calls if they featured pre-recorded videos of other birds.
A related study published by researchers from the University of Glasgow shows that parrots strongly preferred talking to other parrots in real time. Over the course of six months, the parrots spent more time engaged in calls with real birds than with pre-recorded videos.
Together, the birds in the study spent 561 minutes in love calls with other birds, compared to just 142 minutes of interaction with the pre-recorded videos.
The researchers hope that these findings can one day be used to help parrots improve their socialization.
And although some of the parrot keepers surveyed noted the steep learning curve to train the parrots, they all said the project was worthwhile once completed.
The results of the study are detailed in a paper that will be presented at the Association of Computing Machinery's CHI conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems.
