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Science Technology

Magpies Have Outwitted Scientists by Helping Each Other Remove Tracking Devices (abc.net.au) 55

Posted by msmash from the how-about-that dept.
An anonymous reader shares a report: When we attached tiny, backpack-like tracking devices to five Australian magpies for a pilot study, we didn't expect to discover an entirely new social behaviour rarely seen in birds. Our goal was to learn more about the movement and social dynamics of these highly intelligent birds, and to test these new, durable and reusable devices. Instead, the birds outsmarted us. As our new research paper explains, the magpies began showing evidence of cooperative "rescue" behaviour to help each other remove the tracker. While we're familiar with magpies being intelligent and social creatures, this was the first instance we knew of that showed this type of seemingly altruistic behaviour: helping another member of the group without getting an immediate, tangible reward. As academic scientists, we're accustomed to experiments going awry in one way or another. Expired substances, failing equipment, contaminated samples, an unplanned power outage -- these can all set back months (or even years) of carefully planned research. For those of us who study animals, and especially behaviour, unpredictability is part of the job description. This is the reason we often require pilot studies.
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Magpies Have Outwitted Scientists by Helping Each Other Remove Tracking Devices More

Magpies Have Outwitted Scientists by Helping Each Other Remove Tracking Devices

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  • Here kitty, kitty... (Score:4, Interesting)

    by Zontar The Mindless ( 9002 ) <plasticfish.info@ g m a il.com> on Tuesday February 22, 2022 @11:59AM (#62291923) Homepage

    Evidently, these scientists have never observed how magpies deal with a cat trying to climb a tree that one pair of them is nesting in.

    • Re:Here kitty, kitty... (Score:5, Interesting)

      by sg_oneill ( 159032 ) on Tuesday February 22, 2022 @01:02PM (#62292113)

      Oh Australian Maggies get straight up diabolical if they think your a threat to a nest. A female who thinks your after her eggs or babies will straight up try and kill you.

      Generally the rule with magpie swooping is, if it comes from behind you, its a male showboating to impress the females. Generally you can turn around and charge at it, and it'll get the hint and back off. Wooing the ladies isn't worth fighitng with a 6ft tall super-predator.

      If its a female, then she means business. She will come from the front, and she will go for your eyes. This is *dangerous*. You cover your face and run away. Eventually she'll conclude your far enough away. But if you return she will resume her attack. Do not fuck with an angry female magpie.

      The males though? Just fancy boys showing off. Shoo it away.

      • I had this happen with a different bird at a resort in Las Vegas. My nephew and I were walking to the pool and a bird came out of a bush and made a beeline straight for my face. I literally had to dive out of its way. I'm not sure how it chose me out of all the guests in the area, but I guess it made its point, as it circled around back to its bush afterward.

        There's also a pair of pigeons that nest every year in the bike shed closest to my apartment. The female is in the shed most of the time and doe

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by lsllll ( 830002 )

        If its a female, then she means business.

        The males though? Just fancy boys showing off. Shoo it away.

        So, kinda like humans ...

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by tlhIngan ( 30335 )

        Oh Australian Maggies get straight up diabolical if they think your a threat to a nest. A female who thinks your after her eggs or babies will straight up try and kill you.

        Generally the rule with magpie swooping is, if it comes from behind you, its a male showboating to impress the females. Generally you can turn around and charge at it, and it'll get the hint and back off. Wooing the ladies isn't worth fighitng with a 6ft tall super-predator.

        If its a female, then she means business. She will come from the

        • Oh definately Magpies are intelligent little guys. Tool useage and all that. I think one of the funniest things I saw was when I was working at my local university, there was a gang of male magpies that would hang out at the campus tavern and beg for food, crisps and the like. But just before mating season a new female magpie came into the area, and the boys where all *very* keen on mating with her. So they started swooping people trying to show off. But if you'd have crisps they alternate between swooping

      • Oh Australian Maggies get straight up diabolical if they think your a threat to a nest. A female who thinks you're after her eggs or babies will straight up try and kill you.

        Of course, this is Australia. EVERYTHING is trying to kill you.

    • I just searched on Youtube for "magpies cat" and only found a few videos showing magpies "taunting" cats. Nothing with a cat climbing a tree.

  • smart (Score:5, Funny)

    by bugs2squash ( 1132591 ) on Tuesday February 22, 2022 @12:08PM (#62291953)
    I haven't figured out how to stop google tracking me yet. I wonder of they just removed the trackers or fitted them to unsuspecting kookaburras.

    • I put my tracker on a koala, and now google thinks I haven't left my home in 2 years.

    • Well, the birds were figuratively bugged. But they might have seen the electronic devices as literally bugs. So as part of their mutual grooming or mating habits (I peck your neck, you peck mine), they squashed the bugs.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by antdude ( 79039 )

      I know a Magpie who uses Internet. I should ask her, but she might attack me. :P

  • Other point of view (Score:4, Funny)

    by Errol backfiring ( 1280012 ) on Tuesday February 22, 2022 @01:07PM (#62292125) Journal
    I guess some RFCs [ietf.org] are not so funny when seen from a different perspective.
  • The "harness" remains very much a work-in-progress. No human or bird would put up with such a tasteless and cumbersome design.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by Megane ( 129182 )

      And that's probably the trick. Make them want it, like a normie human wants a smart phone. Those kind of birds like shiny objects. If it was an attractive enough tracking device, they'd probably even try to steal it off each other.

  • Grooming (Score:5, Interesting)

    by rgmoore ( 133276 ) <glandauer@charter.net> on Tuesday February 22, 2022 @01:27PM (#62292167) Homepage

    This seems to me to be basically a form of grooming. Lots of animals engage in mutual grooming, where each animal removes parasites from others that they can't reach themselves. If they see these tracking devices as in the same category as parasites, they'll absolutely help each other by removing them.

  • The Men may have superior technology, but they have neither honor nor courage. That is our greatest advantage.

  • The first rule of behavioral science is to assume the subjects are exhibiting unanticipated behavior, specifically including actively subverting your experiment in ways you thought were impossible.

  • Didn't they ever Heckle and Jeckle cartoons? They should have known better. Anyway, at least they can track them when they're torn off, right?

  • FOOLED YOU!!!

  • At least they will pass the T test in Australia.

    (tea test)

  • Perhaps a lawyer could send those magpies a letter threatening legal action for violating the DMCA.

  • This couild be useful (Score:4, Funny)

    by techdolphin ( 1263510 ) on Tuesday February 22, 2022 @03:04PM (#62292491)
    Perhaps we could train the magpies to remove Apple AirTags.
  • Anakin Skywalker: "I built pod racers, and a communication droid. But can't find the tracker on my mom".

    Magpie: "Hold my beer!"

  • So, animals that are considered 'prey' on the continent where EVERYTHING is prey are keen on and able to remove something suspicious from one another . . .

    I'm guessing magpies since the lovebirds and cockatiels were able to completely evade the researchers?

    Wait, were these 'researchers" actually coyotes?
  • Scientists forget social animals participate in grooming, fail to understand they are parasitizing the birds to generate data, and that all social animals participate in parasite removal.

  • About 18 months ago I was swooped by a magpie when I was walking the dog.It was a direct, heavy impact that would have drawn blood if not for my hat.

    Being a sensible, mature middle aged man I saw the bird watching me from a tree after the attack and decided to throw some sticks at it to show my displeasure.
    To be clear, I was not intending to injure it. The sticks were at the top of their trajectory and barely moving when they got close. The bird jumped to another branch once or twice when t

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