WHICH ANIMALS ARE WILLING TO SHARE MONEY?

Everybody knows that African grey parrots (Psittacus erithacus) are extremely intelligent and have a gift for language. But researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Ornithology in Seewiesen, Germany, have discovered that not only do the birds have a big brain, they also have a big heart. The parrots that were studied demonstrated their willingness to accept money (which was represented in this case by metal rings) as a reward, which they would then exchange for nuts later on. Even more impressive: They showed that they are willing to help other parrots trade money for rewards by sharing rings with them without benefit to themselves. “Remarkably, African grey parrots were intrinsically motivated to help others—even if the other individual was not their friend—so they behaved prosocially,” says study coauthor Dr. Auguste von Bayern.