The Sensory Superiority of a BirdBrain

Science has always considered that birds have a poor sense of smell. With their flashy colors and complex dances for mating, their musical talents for communicating, and their ultra-sharp eyesight for foraging, after all, why should Mother Nature have granted them keen noses to boot?

Cawthron Institute molecular biologist Andrew Fidler has shot down conventional wisdom, producing genetic evidence that the sense of smell is much more important in birds than has previously been thought. Working with former colleagues at the Max Planck Institute for Ornithology in Bavaria, Dr. Fidler has uncovered proof that some species use scent to navigate, forage, and even to distinguish individuals.

The team searched for smell-related genes in nine species, and were surprised to discover that some bird species rival mammals in their number of olfactory receptors. Mice have roughly 1000 working olfactory receptor genes, and humans have about 400 (although we use only about 40% of them). The researchers found that the Kiwi–which has nostrils at the tip of its bill and probes the forest floor at night for food–has about 600. The Kakapo, a nocturnal parrot, has 667. “The sense of smell in birds may be as good as that of humans, and in some cases, even better,” says graduate student Silke Steiger.

So, let’s tally it all up: They fly for free, they sing better than humans, they dance better than humans, they dress better than humans, they see better than humans, and now, they smell better than humans? I’d be feeling a little short-changed if they could, say, speak…

Oh, shut up, Polly. Now you’re just gloating.