Alex was born in 1976. Since he was two years old, Alex had been the subject of significant scientific intrigue. His life and everyday activities were something of a mystery, providing critical insight that has fundamentally changed cognitive science. While researchers never quite figured out how Alex’s brain worked - indeed, the nature of his cognition remains controversial - he changed the landscape of science, as well as the lives of those around him.
Alex died in 2007 at the age of 31. He was tragically found one morning in his cage, dead from natural causes. Captive grey parrots can live for up to 60 years. It’s difficult to know what Alex could have achieved had he lived his full lifespan.
As it is, Alex is one of the most famous and well-documented subjects of animal linguistic development. Adopted by animal psychologist Irene Pepperberg when he was just a year old, Alex eventually learned over 100 words, which he could combine to construct cohesive sentences and express novel ideas. He could count up to six, and seemed to develop the concept of zero on his own. One of the earliest sources we have of humans using the number zero is from Egypt in 1770 BCE. There are no grey parrots in Egypt, so I doubt he could have picked it up there.
Grey parrots are endemic further south in Africa, found mainly in the equatorial region. Almost everything we know about grey parrots is based on observations of captive specimens, as it’s very difficult to observe them in the wild. They put a great deal of effort into hiding from predators. Humans pose a significant threat to grey parrots; they are highly trafficked due to being sought after as pets. In the wild, they mimic other birds and even bats.
The last thing Alex said was to his primary carer, Irene: “You be good. I love you.”
alex
A lot of doubt has been cast on how actually intelligent Alex was; some claim that he was merely responding to external stimuli with learned patterns, rather than constructing thoughts through expression. This was the case with Nim Chimpsky, a chimp who was believed to have been successfully taught sign language before the study was debunked. Nim was originally believed to be able to sign simple communications, such as asking for food. I assume Noam Chomsky is also able to do this, which must be why they named the monkey after him. I’d like to believe that Alex was thinking. I’m not sure if Alex was thinking. I think it’s hubristic to believe that an animal must have a human way of thinking for it to count as thinking. Alex was smart enough to be a parrot. He was smart enough to be more than a parrot.
My dad was 24 when Alex hatched. He knew over 100 words, could count to six, and knew about zero. He was not smart enough to raise children.
These days, some domesticated grey parrots are known to request their favourite songs from smart home speakers. Rocco, a grey parrot in the UK, likes the Foo Fighters and Kings of Leon. My dad once played “Hello, Dolly” on repeat every night for five months straight. He doesn’t like smart devices, nor do I.
Why would Psittacus erithacus want a Homo sapiens’ brain? What could we offer that a parrot does not already have?
On the day Alex died, 18 May 2007, there were bombings in Juliaca, Hyderabad and Cotabato. I don’t know any of the people who died in the bombings. They probably knew over 100 words, and could count to six, and knew about zero. I can’t justify thinking more about Alex than any of them. Please don’t ask me to justify it.
We cannot really know what Alex felt, what parrot emotions he discovered, while being coaxed to echo a language that was not his own. It’s tempting to believe that Alex meant more or less than the words he said. What does “I love you” mean from a parrot? I don’t believe it when some people tell me they love me. I might believe it better from Alex.