For the past three years parrots across the U.S. have been taught to video call each other as a form of social interaction. This observational study was done to learn more about the social habits of captive parrots and how parrot-to-parrot interaction can benefit them. 

Parrots are very social animals, typically living in large groups. They thrive in settings with their peers. Captive parrots are primarily kept in singular bird homes, which can be detrimental to them, leading to isolation or depression if they don’t have a ‘flock’ of their own, whether that be other birds or a close human family.

According to the Smithsonian Magazine, “Domesticated parrots that learned to initiate video chats with other pet parrots had a variety of positive experiences.” The study revealed that even digital connections could improve the birds’ overall quality of life. Many parrots learned new skills and seemed to love talking to one another. 

Rébecca Kleinberger, a researcher at Northeastern University, said, “We were really careful about training the birds’ caregivers thoroughly to ensure that they could offer an appropriate level of support to empower their parrots but also help them avoid any negative experiences.” One of the ways they did this was by limiting the time they were allowed to call each other, as they seemed to become uninterested after five minutes.

Parrots can be taught to speak like humans, but this is repetition and mostly vocalized without meaning. However, parrots can make their own vocalizations, which increases according to how social they are. Social parrots have even been shown to use names for each other.

In another study, researchers surveyed almost 890 different parrots via the ManyParrots project, a team of scientists who study parrot vocal learning. Around half of the recordings submitted showed proof of parrots saying names, and less than a fourth of them depicted the parrots having specific names for specific people or animals.

Parrots use names differently than humans do. As they don’t have as complex of a language as we do, they use specific vocalizations for these ‘names.’ Some parrots will say their own name over and over to gain attention. They have also been seen to use names for individuals who are not present or to address each other.