What are the most foolish birds in the world? This is an interesting question that many people are curious about. In this article, we will share with you a list of the most foolish bird species and explain why their IQ is significantly lower compared to other bird species.
1. Cardinal (Northern Cardinal)
The Cardinal is included in the list of foolish birds due to its bad habit of flying straight into glass windows or sliding doors. This behavior indicates a lack of attention to the presence of glass, resulting in strong collisions. Male Cardinals even mistake their own reflection in a windowpane as a rival and attack it. Unfortunately, these birds do not learn from their mistakes. Instead, they repeat this behavior multiple times as a form of self-defense. It must be admitted that this behavior is quite foolish.
2. Northern Fulmar
This bird species is also included in the list of animals with low IQ in the bird family. The Northern Fulmar is a seabird that primarily resides in the northern regions and only returns to land to breed on rocky cliffs in the North Atlantic and North Pacific during the nesting season. They lay a single egg/incubation cycle.
The reason they are considered foolish birds is that Northern Fulmars lack the ability to defend themselves. They have a stomach part called the proventriculus that contains a foul-smelling oil. If a predator gets too close or threatens them, they will regurgitate this oil, making it easier for the predator to detect them. Additionally, after regurgitating, they are unable to fly. This makes it challenging for Northern Fulmars to survive if they are targeted by predators.
3. Emu (of the ostrich family)
Emus are primarily found in Australia and are known to be one of the least intelligent bird species in the ostrich family. Essentially, these birds are easily deceived. If threatened and attacked by an Emu, simply placing a stick on top of your head to appear larger will frighten them away. They are easily fooled and can be overlooked.
Additionally, Emus are unable to fly despite having wings. They use their wings for cooling purposes, expanding the air around their bodies. The wings also assist them in running faster by providing directional control.
4. Kakapo Parrot
You might be surprised to learn that parrots are generally considered intelligent creatures, known for their cleverness, problem-solving skills, and ability to mimic human speech. However, within the parrot family, there exists a species called the Kakapo Parrot, which is quite foolish.
Kakapo Parrots have peculiar and even native habits. When they encounter something that scares them, they freeze in place. Occasionally, they will climb up a tree and attempt to fly, but unfortunately, they are flightless and quickly crash back to the ground, causing themselves pain.
The explanation for their lack of intelligence compared to other parrot species lies in their living environment. Kakapo Parrots inhabit an ideal environment with few natural predators, and their diet is predominantly composed of nuts and fruits, which are relatively low in nutritional value.
5. Turkey
Turkeys also fall into the category of “dim-witted” animals because they are “almost incapable of distinguishing between rain or shine.” In fact, when it starts raining, turkeys have to look up at the sky for about 30 seconds to understand what is happening.
Furthermore, the memory of turkeys is prone to even more absurd mistakes when it comes to mating. As a habit, the male turkeys perform elaborate dances to attract the females, but when scientists conducted an experiment using a fake turkey, they couldn’t tell the difference. Even just a turkey head prop easily fooled them, and they immediately started displaying their courtship dance.
6. Quail
Quails are known for their daring and reckless behavior. They often put themselves in challenging situations. These birds typically live in small flocks, but they don’t have a leader. They choose breeding grounds that are easily accessible to predators. It is common for quail nests to be destroyed, and in such cases, the mother quail abandons her chicks. Breeders make efforts to propagate these birds due to their complex and peculiar behavior. These birds can accidentally burn themselves on heating systems, drown in water dishes in a foolish manner, and even bang their heads against the ceiling.
7. Killdeer
Killdeer are small birds with a distinctive name derived from their piercing call that sounds like they’re saying “Kill deer!”. These birds are considered foolish because most animals have an instinct to flee from predators, but the call of the Killdeer seems to invite their enemies. The loud and conspicuous call of the Killdeer advertises its current location to all potential predators. They also build their nests on the ground, making their eggs vulnerable to theft.
We hope that this article has provided you with interesting information about birds in general and the ones considered the most foolish in the world. Stay tuned for more fascinating knowledge updates.