How Birds Spot a Fraud and Choose the Right Gender for a Mate

Humans have marvelous powers of recognition. No one’s surprised when parents identify their child in a crowd by a glimpse of her face or echo of her voice. But we aren’t unique in this regard. Other creatures have evolved impressive powers of discrimination.

Take birds. “Their recognition system is really quite remarkable,” says Mark Hauber, director of the animal behavior and conservation program at Hunter College. “It has to be. You have to find food, you have to escape from your enemies, and you have to make sure you don’t mate with your parents.” Calling someone “bird brain,” in short, is misguided.

Here are three birds with stunning abilities of recognition.