Sociable woodpeckers that cooperate have evolved smaller brains
It’s long been thought that living in a group leads to bigger brains – including in humans. But a surprising finding in woodpeckers shows this isn’t always the case
Bees learn to play golf and show off how clever they really are
Bumblebees have shown they can learn how to push a ball into a hole to get a reward, staking their claim to be considered tool users
Monkeys should be able to talk just like us – so why don’t they?
There’s nothing anatomical stopping monkeys from making human-like sounds we could understand finds a new study, which suggests they lack the brains for it
Creative cockatoos skilfully make tools from different materials
A parrot genius known to make tools has now shown that it does this with a specific purpose in mind, making useful items from twigs, wood and cardboard
Chimps, bonobos and orangutans grasp how others view the world
Apes’ ability to anticipate how a misinformed person will behave suggests they can see the world from the perspective of others – though maybe not consciously
Don’t worry, bee happy: Bees found to have emotions and moods
Treats seem to trigger bumblebees’ dopamine pathways, appearing to make them feel happy and take a more upbeat outlook on life
Endangered dolphin with broken blowhole learns to mouth-breathe
What to do when your blowhole is blocked? A dolphin has learned to breathe through its mouth instead, even though it’s not usually an option for them
Genius crow’s tool-bending behaviour may be natural to its kind
Betty the crow astounded scientists with its ability to bend a piece of garden wire into a neat hook back in 2002. Now it looks like wild crows do it all the time
Watch brainy zoo animals figure out a box puzzle to get at food
Tests on 35 species show that relative brain size predicts a carnivore's ability to solve problems, with bears beating meerkats
