Automatic imitation of intransitive actions in macaws

Automatic imitation is the involuntary tendency of humans to copy others' actions even when counterproductive. We examined the automatic imitation of <i>intransitive</i> actions in blue-throated macaws (<i>Ara glaucogularis</i>), employing a stimulus-response-compatibility task. After training seven macaws to perform two different actions with legs and wings upon specific hand commands, the subjects were divided into a compatible and incompatible group. We rewarded the subjects for performing the same action as the conspecific model in the compatible group and the opposite action in the incompatible group. Involuntarily imitating the demonstrated actions, the incompatible group made more errors than the compatible group and took longer to eventually respond correctly. The study provides evidence for the automatic imitation of intransitive actions in non-human animals- parrots, suggesting that arbitrary action imitation facilitated by a mirror-neuron system in parrot brain may be adaptive in the ever-changing complex social environment of parrots and possibly drive cultural evolution.