I meant to write something about the Tsarnaev trial and the death penalty today, discuss a new survey of world religion, and address the new legal ruling on the rights of chimpanzees, but those will have to wait, for I am working on two essays and a talk (you try putting up eight posts a day on top of everything else!). Instead, I offer you badinage.
When I was in South Carolina, I had the privilege of seeing Snowball the Dancing Cockatoo, a male specimen of the medium sulphur-crested cockatoo (Cacatua galerita eleonora), and a world-famous bird who’s been the subject of three scientific papers. Snowball happens to be the owner (and I mean that!) of reader Irena Schulz, who happened to be my host for my two-seminar visit.
Snowball is famous for being, well, as Wikipedia puts it, “the first non-human animal conclusively demonstrated to be capable of beat induction — perceiving music and synchronizing his body movements to the beat (i.e. dancing).” And I got to watch him dance on his special perch—to a variety of music. As reported previously, I can verify that Snowball varies the rhythm of his dancing to match the beat of his music. Sadly, he is a curmudgeon, and you can’t touch him or he’ll bite. But he’s also a diva, and really does crave attention. (I can’t figure out the evolutionary underpinnings of that craving, for it’s not accompanied by a food reward.)
In a few days I’ll put up more pictures of the bird (and my trip) and some videos I took of Snowball in action. Meanwhile, here’s a photo taken by reader and artist Su Gould (see the cartoon below) showing me recording Snowball’s dance moves (he has 17 of them!). As he stamps his feet to the beat, sometimes raising one leg high in the air, he also waves and circles his head wildly, sometimes erecting his crest. It’s an amazing spectacle, both hilarious and biologically fascinating. In the meantime, you can see more professional videos of Snowball’s dancing here.
Su also produced a new comic strip in her continuing series about Snowball and his pal Buddy P., a palmetto cockroach; and she was kind enough to feature me in the cartoon, including the photo above.
Goodtimes!
Cool about the dancing. We bird-sat a couple of sulphurs many years ago. My general impressions align with Jerry’s – they can be bitey and bad-tempered (not just with people, but with each other too). They always screech for attention. But they are also very, very smart.
sub
Birds are always amusing. There is one in a local pet store that belongs to the store (ie: not for sale). It is a parrot but I am not sure which kind. I was talking with the parrot and I showed him a squeaky toy (a blue salamander) I was picking up my dog (for easter – my dog gets easter presents because of Jesus) & the bird got really nervous and backed away. I always forget that birds can be easily startled even though they are curious.
Excellent cartoon Su. 🙂
Thank you!
I love watching Snowball’s videos.
I’ve often wondered — does Snowball seem to have a favorite (or favorite) song(s)? That is, are there some tunes he responds to with immediate enthusiasm, gladly initiating and repeating his dance over and over, whereas other songs require a warm up period, some coaxing, and lackluster response? It might be anthropomorphising but he does seem to be enjoying himself. People have favorites. Maybe cockatoos do too.
Yes, Snowball does have a favorite song – “Everybody” by the Backstreet Boys. He does have his favorite songs, but that is undoubtedly his #1 pick. He does respond with immediate enthusiasm to some songs. Much of the time, he does sit and listen to a song the first time through…if he likes it, he’ll rock out on it the second time through. If he doesn’t particularly care for it, he’ll either ignore it and preen his already pristine feathers…or he’ll stare at me with a “Seriously?” look on his face until I turn it off and put something else on. 🙂
Thanks!
One of his funniest moment is dancing to a Polka. It was right after a rock song, and at first he thought it was an odd selection, he did get into the beat. He is, after all, a professional.
I’m amazed no Russian circus bear has come close to the same talent.
I am fortunate enough to live in an area where we have a few large flocks.
I often find them on my front and back yard on the ground and in the trees eating various bits of fruit and seed and stuff.
They really are fabulous flyers and love flying. I have seen them do all manner of tricks and play flying.
I thought I saw one do a barrel roll once and maybe even a loop. they love zooming around showing off to each other.
I was in a hotel once where it was a large semi circular shape and the cocky’s, in a flock, with outliers, were circling round and round playing with the air currents. They would hurtle toward the face of the building and then turn at the last minute and either coast up and land on a ledge or just turn and hurtle back down and around. At the same time others were just circling, with the semi circular building face providing different air to play with
This went on for ages, there may have been more than one group.
It was an amazing thing.
Up in the country where I am now, it great to see the large flocks cruising around at various altitudes, playing with the air in stormy conditions.
When they are flying around like that and they are letting out that raucous primordial sound they make, it is easy to think one is actually watching dinosaurs at play.
Very intelligent dinosaurs.
Very nice observations.
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Are there no other examples of cockatoos, or perhaps a member of some other species of parrot, behaving as Snowball does? One would have thought that if one member of a species does this sort of thing, other members of the same or closely related species would do so, too.
Yes, there actually are other parrots who dance to music. You Tube is filled with videos. Some videos are authentic – the bird is actually dancing to the music being played in the video. Other videos show a bird flailing about, but the music is added later.
Cockatoos make the best dancers for reasons we do not yet understand completely.
I’m sure sexual selection would be involved; courtship in many birds including cockies involves synchronization or alternation of moves (or calls) by the partners, so synchronization with an ambient source of rhythm might not be a big extra step. Rarity of dancing might just be due to the shortage of predictably recurring dance tunes in nature.
I love the Layson Albatross dance–they even have their own castenets!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S1rsOrOq4So