Parrots imitate parrots

Blue-throated macaws have an enormous ability to imitate

Blue-throated macaws, a critically endangered parrot species, have demonstrated automatic imitation of intransitive (goal-less) actions—a phenomenon previously documented only in humans. In a study conducted by an international team of researchers from the Max Planck Institute for Biological Intelligence, in collaboration with the Loro Parque Fundación, scientists reveal that macaws involuntarily copy intransitive movements. This finding, in addition to the well-known vocal mimicry skills of parrots, highlights their remarkable motor imitation abilities. The research also suggests the possibility of a mirror-neuron system in parrots, akin to that found in humans.

Imitation of goal-less intransitive actions is a cornerstone of human cultural evolution. A large part of human culture comprises the transmission of technical skills, usually involving tools. Another substantial part is the learning of cultural conventions, which encompasses high-fidelity copying of gestures or movements and fosters social bonding and prosocial behaviors.

Previous studies have shown that humans mimic gestures involuntarily—what is known as automatic imitation. Until now, evidence of such automatic imitation in non-human animals was limited to transitive (object-directed) actions, such as grasping objects, as observed in dogs and budgerigars.

Automatic imitation in macaws

Esha Haldar and colleagues from the Comparative Cognition Research group working in collaboration with the Loro Parque Fundación in Loro Parque, Tenerife, tested whether macaws would display automatic imitation of intransitive actions. In their study, now published in iScience, the researchers trained macaws to perform two distinct actions (“lift leg” and “spread wings”) in response to specific hand signals. Birds were then divided into two groups: Macaws in the compatible group received a reward when they mimicked the action of another macaw (demonstrator). Birds in the incompatible group received a reward when they did not imitate the action, but performed exactly the opposite one.

The incompatible group struggled to suppress their automatic tendency to mimic the demonstrator’s action. This resulted in more incorrect responses and longer reaction times compared to the compatible group. “The findings are remarkable because they show, for the first time, a non-human animal involuntary imitation of intransitive actions,” explains Esha Haldar, the study's lead author. “In humans, this behavior is linked to neural circuits involving mirror neurons, which activate during both the observation and execution of the same action. While our study does not directly prove the presence of mirror neurons in parrots, it strongly suggests their involvement in motor imitation.”

Implications for social and cultural dynamics

“Parrots are ideal for studying imitation,” adds Auguste von Bayern, senior author of the study. “These highly social animals live in dynamic groups (so-called fission-fusion societies), where individuals frequently form new sub-groups. Automatic imitation of movements and gestures may enhance integration of individuals into newly formed groups and generally foster social cohesion and bonding. Potentially, it may underpin the cultural transmission of group-specific behaviors. Further research is needed to explore these exciting possibilities.” The findings also emphasize that motor mimicry has evolved independently in distantly related species, likely as a result of similar social and environmental pressures.

Blue-throated macaws are a critically endangered parrot species endemic to Bolivia. The remaining population in the wild counts less than 350 mature individuals. Loro Parque Fundación has been supporting their conservation for more than two decades with more than two million dollars to date and was also the first zoological center to reproduce the species under humane care. Until now, there have hatched 465 parrots in their center. The new scientific findings have important implications for potential reintroduction projects into the wild: Individuals could learn natural behaviors from wild conspecifics and adapt to their natural environment more quickly.