Cockatoos have learned to operate drinking fountains in Australia

Why cockatoos use fountains

• Multiple hypotheses discussed: better-tasting “pure” water, elevated vantage point to watch for predators, laziness/convenience, and sheer curiosity.
• Several commenters argue taste alone is not obvious, noting many pets prefer muddy puddles over clean tap water, suggesting “interesting” or variable water sources may be attractive.
• Running water is suggested as a general cue of freshness (as with cats), possibly relevant here.
• Others propose that operating the mechanism itself is mentally stimulating “play” for a very smart, puzzle-loving bird.

Playfulness, mischief, and social behavior

• Cockatoos are repeatedly described as pranksters and “little jerks”: destroying decks, hoses, and tools; running what amounts to a neighborhood “protection racket” by threatening property until fed.
• Stories from Australia and New Zealand extend this to other birds (kea, weka, seagulls, ibis, magpies, crows), showing coordinated theft, distraction tactics, bin-opening and even traffic-cone manipulation.
• Cockatoos are noted as very social, often in large flocks that split and recombine, with complex interaction and apparent enjoyment of games.

Pet birds: intelligence and welfare

• Rescue and pet owners emphasize high intelligence, curiosity, destructiveness, long lifespans, and emotional complexity.
• Birds are likened to “flying eternal toddlers with can‑opener mouths,” needing constant stimulation and often outliving owners.
• Several commenters say this is why they now consider long-term caging of parrots/cockatoos unethical, despite how charming they are.

Animal intelligence and avian cognition

• Discussion touches on convergent evolution of intelligence: bird pallium vs mammalian neocortex; neuron density in bird forebrains; parallels with cephalopods.
• Debate over whether humans underestimate bird intelligence or overestimate human intelligence; some argue cockatoos at “3‑year‑old” level, others push back on dismissing their understanding.
• Brief disagreement on bird language abilities: parrots can mimic, but some species (e.g., African greys) show evidence of deeper semantic understanding.

Handedness and learning claims

• An anecdotal “fun fact” claims wild cockatoos are all left-footed when manipulating food, sparking broader discussion of handedness in animals.
• One commenter calls “learned to operate” overstated because success was ~41%; others counter that twisting a spring-loaded handle with body weight clearly qualifies as operating the device.