Parrot With Brain Of 5-Year-Old Child Dies
Bird Had Brain Of Typical 5-Year-Old
POSTED: 7:54 am PDT September 11, 2007
BOSTON — A gifted African Grey parrot that was said to have the brain of a typical 5-year-old child died unexpectedly inside his Brandeis University science lab cage last week, leaving researchers mourning the bird’s death.
Scientists said the bird, named Alex, had advanced language and speech recognition skills, and had helped reshape their understanding of the avian brain during the course of 30 years of research.
“It’s devastating to lose an individual you’ve worked with pretty much every day for 30 years,” scientist Irene Pepperberg told the Boston Globe.
The parrot, purchased in 1973, eventually learned to identify 50 different objects, seven colors and five shapes, the newspaper reported. He also learned to count quantities up to six, including zero, and was able to articulate certain desires.
Scientists said they used what they learned to help disabled children try to communicate.
It’s not clear what caused the bird’s death last Thursday night. A veterinarian could not find anything obviously wrong with him. Pepperberg said the average African Grey parrot lives about 50 years.
To learn more about the bird, visit AlexFoundation.org.
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