Nature & Environment

Cockatoos in Australia have figured out how to use a drinking fountain

By T.K. Randall
July 12, 2025

Image: AI-generated (Midjourney) Cockatoos in suburban Sydney, Australia have gained something of a reputation in recent years due to their penchant for breaking into trash cans to look for food - and now it seems as though they have picked up the art of using a human drinking fountain to quench their thirst as well

Researchers were amazed when they discovered that several of the birds had figured out a way to operate the mechanism by using their claws and beaks and by positioning themselves in just the right position to drink the water as it shoots up.

It is believed that this technique has become something of a 'tradition' among the local birds with more of them picking up the skill after watching others do it.

One of the researchers who has been monitoring the birds is behavioral ecologist Barbara Klump of the University of Vienna.She and her colleagues set up motion-activated cameras which recorded the cockatoos making 525 separate attempts to drink from the fountain.

That said, only around 41% of these attempts actually saw the bird satisfy its thirst as pulling off the maneuver - especially with other birds crowding around - often proved tricky.

Even so, the fact that they could do it at all is quite remarkable.

You can watch a video of the cockatoos in action below.


Source: Science.org

Tags: Cockatoo