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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Apr 22, 2026

A Modified Mirror Test as a Visual Guide for the Self-awareness Trait in Wild Antarctica Penguins, Pygoscelis adeliae
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Self-recognition in pigeons revisited.

Emiko Uchino1, Shigeru Watanabe

  • 1Keio University.

Journal of the Experimental Analysis of Behavior
|October 14, 2014
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Pigeons can recognize their own image in a mirror after specific training. This study demonstrates that with appropriate conditioning, pigeons exhibit self-directed behaviors, passing the mirror mark test.

Keywords:
mark testmirror recognitionoperant conditioningself-cognition

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Area of Science:

  • Comparative psychology
  • Animal cognition
  • Behavioral neuroscience

Background:

  • Mirror self-recognition is a complex cognitive ability, typically assessed using the mark test.
  • While great apes, dolphins, and magpies pass the mark test, other species like monkeys and crows do not, suggesting varying levels of self-awareness.
  • Previous studies on pigeons yielded conflicting results regarding mirror self-recognition, highlighting the need for refined methodologies.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate mirror self-recognition in pigeons using the mark test.
  • To determine if extensive training in prerequisite behaviors can elicit self-directed actions in pigeons when presented with a mirror.
  • To explore the role of ontogenetic contingency in developing mirror self-recognition.

Main Methods:

  • Two pigeons received extensive training in self-directed pecking and mirror-guided object pecking, using identical topography and food reinforcement.
  • After prerequisite behavior training, pigeons were subjected to the mirror mark test.
  • Self-directed behaviors in response to a mark on their body, visible only in the mirror, were observed and evaluated.

Main Results:

  • Both trained pigeons spontaneously integrated learned behaviors and displayed self-directed actions during the mark test.
  • The pigeons demonstrated behaviors indicative of recognizing the mark on their own body in the mirror.
  • This suggests that pigeons are capable of mirror self-recognition under specific training conditions.

Conclusions:

  • Pigeons can achieve mirror self-recognition following targeted training in prerequisite behaviors.
  • The study underscores the importance of suitable ontogenetic contingency in developing advanced cognitive abilities like self-awareness.
  • Findings challenge previous assumptions about avian cognitive limitations in mirror self-recognition.