UVic swallows a YouTube hit for garage door- opening trick
VICTORIA — Have you seen the video of barn swallows that learned to open an underground bike garage at the University of Victoria?
The swallows trip a motion detector, activating a mechanism that opens doors flanked by chain- link fences. This allows the birds to fly to and from their nests in the garage, located under University Centre.
A video of the gate- opening swallows, shot by Victoria’s Grant Hughes, has been viewed on YouTube more than 750,000 times.
The 96- second clip, which is utterly charming and perfect for forwarding to friends, has even attracted the international press.
However, Canadian bird expert Dick Canning, a Penticton biologist who works for Bird Studies Canada, doesn’t think they’re all that smart.
“I don’t think there’s any intelligence involved,” he said.
“These barn swallows would have nested there the previous season. Upon returning and discovering the new doors ( installed in November), they’d fly around in a confused manner. And — lo and behold — this movement tripped the sensors.”
If you want real bird intelligence, meet the crow. Britain’s Daily Mail reported on a study that suggested crows possess reasoning abilities rivalling those of a seven- yearold human.
For instance, New Caledonian crows figured out how to reach floating food by dropping heavy objects into waterfilled tanks.