The fable The Raven and the Aesop Jug could be true | Discover it

Among the most intelligent marine animals are dolphins and octopuses like "Coconut octopus" of which we speak to you in Supercurioso and that is capable of using tools. Among terrestrial mammals pigs, orangutans, dolphins, elephants or squirrels take the palm. Among the birds the crows stand out and some scientists wanted to check if The fable The Raven and Aesop's Jug could be true. Join us to discover it!

Aesop, a fabulist of Ancient Greece, wrote his fables in the sixth century BC. The protagonists of his stories tend to be animals and present a conflict between two protagonists. They make a decision freely and the success or failure of their action supposes the final evaluation and the moral of the story, which contains a teaching of useful or moral character.

The fable The Raven and Aesop's Jug could be true

In fables, animals have human behavior and in most cases the characteristics and actions attributed to them are nothing more than recreations without any real foundation. However, in the case of the fable of The Raven and the Jug It seems that the way the crow acts may have some truth.

The fable The Raven and Aesop's Jug could be true

Remember the fable: "A crow that died thirsty saw a jar, and hoping to find water in it, flew there with pleasure. When he reached it, he discovered with regret that the level of his content was not within his reach. He tried everything he could think to get to where the water level was, but all his efforts were in vain. "The fable goes on to say that the crow:" He finally discovered that collecting as many stones as he could carry, and dropping them one after the other with his beak inside the jar, the water would rise until he reached his level within his reach and thus could save his life. "The subsequent moral is that" moments of crisis are a source of ingenuity " .

The fable The Raven and the Aesop Pitcher could be true 1

The fable of The Raven and the Jug , written more than 2,000 years ago, was used by Aesop to teach us that necessity sharpens ingenuity, but since the Roman naturalist Pliny the Elder gave testimony that history evidences a real behavior of the corvids, no one else had thought to reflect an animal reality A few years ago, researchers from the University of Cambridge and the Queen Mary, University of London, did an experiment with four rooks captives (rooks and crows belong to the same family as the corvids), presenting them a situation similar to that recounted in Aesop's fable.

The fable The Raven and the Aesop Jug could be true 2

In a tubular transparent container, they placed some water and a worm floating on it. The worm was beyond the reach of the birds, but they placed a pile of stones near them. Two of the rooks they were able to pick up the stones with their picks and throw them into the tube so that the water level was rising and soon the "delicacy" would be up to their peaks on the first attempt and the other two on the second. The rooks studied the situation looking at the containers from above and from the side and then proceeded to collect and deposit in a precise way in the liquid the stones necessary for the food to be within their reach.

The fable The Raven and Aesop's Jug could be true 3

The amazement of the investigators for the feat of the corvids was not there. In a second experiment, rocks of two sizes were placed within the reach of the rooks; some large and others small. Birds chose the larger ones to get the worm within reach in the shortest possible time. They were as efficient as possible. In addition, they found that if they put a tube with water and another with sawdust, in most cases, the rooks acted on the one that contained liquid and not the solid. According to the scientists who carried out the experiment, only the orangutans have had a similar behavior which proves the great intelligence of these animals. In addition to the rooks, other studies carried out with Crows of New Caledonia They gave similar results and even found that they are able to use up to three tools successively . Here is an impressive video demonstrating the skills of New Caledonian ravens.

As you see, Aesop's fable of The Raven and the Jug was based on an actual fact although to the majority, when they told us about children, it seemed impossible for the intelligence of a bird. Did you know that the crows and in general the whole family of the corvids were so intelligent? Do you know any other action that proves it? Share it with us! If you want to know other interesting fables, we invite you to read the post: 5 Mexican fables you must know | They will surprise you!


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