New research reveals some surprising details about how they have evolved relative to the brains of their close cousins, dinosaurs and alligators.
“The brains of birds are as large as many mammals and allow for intelligent behaviors such as learning songs and solving complex puzzles,” said Aki Watanabe, a Museum research associate and an assistant professor at the New York Institute of Technology who is the lead author of the new study, published this week in the journal eLife. “These features make bird brains an excellent system to compare with how humans and other mammals obtained large and unique brains, yet we know relatively very little about how bird brains got to be that way.”
Bird Brains Evolved in Unique Path, Study Finds | AMNH
“The brains of birds are as large as many mammals and allow for intelligent behaviors such as learning songs and solving complex puzzles,” said Aki Watanabe, a Museum research associate and an assistant professor at the New York Institute of Technology who is the lead author of the new study, published this week in the journal eLife. “These features make bird brains an excellent system to compare with how humans and other mammals obtained large and unique brains, yet we know relatively very little about how bird brains got to be that way.”
Bird Brains Evolved in Unique Path, Study Finds | AMNH