Birds are fascinating creatures that exhibit a wide range of behaviors and abilities. One trait that some birds appear to demonstrate is the capacity to hold grudges or resentments against specific people or other birds. But which bird species is most notorious for bearing grudges and remembering past wrongs?
Crows
Many experts believe that crows and other corvid species like ravens, jays, and magpies are among the most likely birds to hold grudges. Here are some key facts about crows that support this idea:
- Highly intelligent – Crows have relatively large brains for their body size and exhibit complex problem-solving abilities, indicating cognitive complexity.
- Social creatures – Crows live in family and community groups, interacting repeatedly with individuals they recognize.
- Long lives – Crows can live 10-15 years in the wild, providing ample time to form bonds and rivalries.
- Memory – Studies show crows have impressive memories, recalling faces and actions for years.
Some famous examples illustrate how crows hold grudges:
- In 2011, a girl in Everett, Washington had a run-in with some crows while wearing a mask. The crows scolded her until she removed the mask. Even after she stopped wearing it, the crows continued harassing the girl, recognizing her face years later.
- Researchers who trap and band wild crows often get attacked upon returning to the area. Even new researchers are identified as enemies if associated with the banding teams.
- Feeding crows can earn their trust, while threatening or harming them can provoke lasting grudges and mobbing attacks.
Overall, crows meet the criteria of intelligence, social bonds, longevity, and memory that allow them to recognize friends and enemies. Their ability to teach others in their group about threats further cements the grudges across generations.
Geese
Like crows, geese are highly social, long-lived birds with good memories. They live in family groups and aggressively defend territories and nests against intruders. If a goose perceives someone as a threat, they are quick to attack.
Geese can live over 20 years and nest in the same areas annually. If specific humans disturb nests or goslings, the parents remember faces and voices, attacking repeat offenders. Cases have been documented of geese chasing, biting, and knocking over people years after an initial encounter.
Scientists have experimentally studied memory in geese. In lab tests, geese remembered which handlers disturbed their nests even after a year had passed, indicating an impressive ability to hold long-term grudges.
Chickens
Domestic chickens also show evidence of holding grudges. In backyard flocks, chickens establish a pecking order and can demonstrate aggression towards humans who threaten flock members or their chicks.
Studies have found chickens can recognize over 100 different human faces. This allows them to differentiate friendly caretakers from strangers or anyone who has mistreated them in the past. Chickens also have episodic memory spanning several years.
When upset with a person, chickens may act aggressively, charging or pecking at the perceived threat. Roosters are especially protective and quick to attack. By demonstrating long memories and social bonds, chickens seem quite adept at holding grudges.
Parrots
Parrots like macaws, cockatoos, and parakeets are highly intelligent, social birds. They live in flocks and form strong pair bonds. Their impressive cognitive abilities likely support remembering friends and past negative experiences. However, less evidence exists of parrots explicitly holding grudges.
Some parrot owners report birds becoming aggressive towards someone who upset them in the past. But it is unclear if this represents a real grudge or is simply a learned defense response based on recognizing cues of danger.
More research is needed on memory and emotion in parrots to determine if they intentionally store resentments like crows and geese do. Their intelligence suggests it is possible, but not definitively proven yet.
Penguins
Penguins are an interesting case. As highly social birds, they work together in colonies and potentially could remember group bonds and rivalries. However, most penguin species live relatively short lives of 10-20 years. Their brains are also smaller relative to body size compared to corvids.
Little experimental evidence exists showing individual penguins holding grudges from year to year. Males do engage in physical fights over mates and territories. But confrontations likely stem from in-the-moment defense of resources rather than past disputes.
Overall, penguins probably do not have the memory or cognitive skills to systematically hold grudges like crows or geese do. Their social bonds focus on the colony as a whole rather than tracking individual relationships.
Pigeons
Pigeons are also an unlikely bird to hold grudges. While pigeons form monogamous pair bonds and recognize individuals, they have relatively simple brains adapted for visual processing rather than complex thoughts.
Researchers have trained pigeons to recognize people and objects. But their memory focuses more on learned associations rather than reasoning skills required to consciously hold grudges.
Like penguins, pigeons have modest lifespans of just a few years in the wild. With limited cognitive abilities and short lives, pigeons do not exhibit the traits required for deliberately holding resentments.
Owls
As predatory but fairly solitary birds, owls like great horned owls or barn owls do not develop social bonds beyond breeding pairs and offspring. While they have good innate abilities to recognize prey animals, owls show little evidence of advanced reasoning that would allow holding grudges.
Owls tend to be territorial and defensive against intruders, especially around nests. However, their aggression stems from instinct rather than any complex memories. If grudge-holding requires social bonds and high cognition, owls generally fall short.
Conclusion
In the bird world, corvids like crows and ravens stand out as most capable of holding grudges and remembering past wrongs. Their intelligence, social nature, and long lives allow them to store memories of faces and actions to respond accordingly in future encounters. Geese also demonstrate similar traits that facilitate grudge-keeping.
Less evidence exists around parrots, penguins, pigeons, and owls holding grudges. These species either lack the cognitive abilities, social nature, or lifespan to systematically store resentments. More research could further illuminate how different bird groups experience emotions and memory.
But the next time a crow scolds you, beware. Crows never forget a face, and seem to take bad behavior personally. So staying on their good side is often the safest bet!