Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 19, 2026

Use of a Video Scoring Anchor for Rapid Serial Assessment of Social Communication in Toddlers
Published on: March 14, 2018
Rooks perceive support relations similar to six-month-old babies
Christopher D Bird1, Nathan J Emery
1Department of Zoology, Subdepartment of Animal Behaviour, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK.
Abstract:
Some corvids have demonstrated cognitive abilities that rival or exceed those of the great apes; for example, tool use in New Caledonian crows, and social cognition, episodic-like memory and future planning in Western scrub-jays. Rooks appear to be able to solve novel tasks through causal reasoning rather than simple trial-and-error learning. Animals with certain expectations about how objects interact would be able to narrow the field of candidate causes substantially, because some causes are simply 'impossible'. Here we present evidence that rooks hold such expectations and appear to possess perceptual understanding of support relations similar to that demonstrated by human babies, which is more comprehensive than that of chimpanzees.
More Related Videos
05:35Experience is Instrumental in Tuning a Link Between Language and Cognition: Evidence from 6- to 7- Month-Old Infants' Object Categorization
Published on: April 19, 2017
06:07Exploring Infant Sensitivity to Visual Language using Eye Tracking and the Preferential Looking Paradigm
Published on: May 15, 2019
Related Concept Videos
Relationship with Parents: Attachment
Theory of Romantic Attachment in Adulthood
Socioemotional Development during Infancy
Primary Temperament Types
Stella Chess...
Attachment
Relationship with Other Adult Family Members and Siblings
Piaget's Stage 1 of Cognitive Development
Exploration...