Why did the chicken cross the road? Quite possibly for a very logical reason. Or even to pursue its interest in ‘structural engineering’.
Chickens are not the ‘bird brains’ we think, it seems. In fact, they are smarter than year-old children.
They can outperform youngsters in mental skills including numeracy and logic, scientists say.
Their numerical abilities appear almost immediately after hatching – unlike humans who are taught how to count. They also have a capacity for basic arithmetic and can keep track of numbers up to five.
They are also able to exercise greater self-control – a recognised sign of higher intelligence – by choosing to delay a reward for a better one.
Christine Nicol, professor of animal welfare at the University of Bristol, said: ‘The study shows that chickens have the capacity to master skills and develop abilities that a human child can take months and years to accomplish.’
The authors also found chickens are born with ‘an instinctive ability in physics, particularly structural engineering’ – as they prefer to approach objects that they know physically make sense to those with an inconsistent or dubious structure.
Free range egg producer, The Happy Egg Co, will use the findings to design ‘mentally stimulating’ outdoor play areas for its birds.