Playful Kea Parrot From New Zealand Has 'Play Call' That Puts Them Into Playful Mood
A newfound playful parrot that particularly found in New Zealand is called Kea, which has a powerful influence of a "play call" with another kea that puts them in a playful mood. The findings show that kea has such an emotionally contagious vocalization, which have made similar findings with chimpanzees and rats.
According to National Geographic, Kea is a highly intelligent parrot that has a particular call, which makes kea the first known non-mammal to show contagious emotions. The researchers got interested in a particular call after analyzing the kea's full vocal repertoire carefully. It was clear that the play call was used as a connection with the bird's play behavior.
The Kea is one of the ten endemic parrot species in New Zealand. It ranges from the lowland river valleys of the South Island's west coast up to the alpine regions. In many instances, researchers saw that kea is instantly animated to play, but not by joining the ongoing play, this means that the play call does not invite another Kea parrot to play, instead, it puts them in a playful frame of mind by affecting their emotions.
Moreover, Science Daily added that while it might be a humanlike, kea play calls can be compared as a form of infectious laughter. Kea parrot does play a lot by themselves, with a companion, on the ground, or even in the air by performing an aerial acrobatics and chasing others.
The outcome of the new study shows rigorous and thorough, and hopefully provides a better observation into the private lives and characters of Kea parrot, which have been heavily persecuted for over a century. According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature, because of its human conflict, the species is now susceptible extinction. With a greater understanding of the kea's unique abilities and interactions, researchers hope that there will be an increase of empathy which is eventually save the species from extinction.
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