One of the biggest imprints in human evolution history that holds high significance is the period in which we managed to get to the bottom of tool creation and shaping. A very little flair from the human brain along with the rest is what has fetched the race to where we stand now. But scientists now prove that we needn’t be heavily complacent with that skill.
A video has now been aired by a group of researchers and scientists that reveals that Homo homosapiens are not the only ones in this world that has got the artistry for shaping tools. Crows, the dark-feather avian pals, share similar skills of tool creation with us.
While it’s the first time a video is being brought out, research member Christian Rutz says that the tool-creation skills of wild crows, specifically with hooked tools for probing, has been long-observed by scientists. It is this observation that pursued them to learn more about this, and resulted in the attachment of cameras to the body of 19 wild New Caledonian crows during 2009.
The video links up several footages of these wild crows that demonstrate various uses of these hook-shaped tools, along with clips that give glimpses of its creation from twigs. Where it finds the main application is with food hunting. Wild crows make use of these shaped sticks to reach out into areas where their beak normally don’t reach.
It’s not the first time that a bird is been found using tools for hunting down food sources, explains Rutz. But he does add that it’s the first time we are witnessing tool-shaping skills in a non-human creature. That according to him is enough to shrug off the widely believed concept that a large brain is required for handling tools.
After all, crows are not bad at being creative either. You might know this very well if you could remember the Genius Crow that unlocked a series of complex puzzles to get him near to his food source.
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