The holy grail of modern philosophy is the problem of consciousness (a.k.a "the hard problem"). Some philosophers and scientists study non-human animals in pursuit of insight about mind in general. Most now agree that consciousness and self-awareness are not limited to human beings. Other great apes, dolphins, elephants and yes -- birds -- have consciousness, albeit of a different kind, than human beings.
Animal consciousness is mysterious, among other reasons, because non-human animals don’t possess human language. Because we can't talk to other species of animals, confirming what they know and feel is challenging. Recent research has proven, however, that some animals -- like parrots, chimpanzees and gorillas -- can learn to communicate with people by using sign language and learning speech. These creatures may help us understand the scope of animal consciousness. But for now we mostly wonder, and wondering is wondrous.
Anyone can join the animal consciousness research project: just contemplate in amazement. No one has the answers yet, and your intuitions and discoveries are worthy of consideration.
Something I often consider is animal rights. To what extent can we interfere with an intelligent animal's life and liberty? Can we own them? How deep is our responsibility to protect them?
Shanti is still a baby, but I'm already trying to interpret his behavior as reflecting his emotions and his mind. Most Congo African Greys don't begin to talk before they are a year old. But Shanti already communicates with his body language and an array of sounds: a telephone ring, a microwave beep, a few hoots and wolf whistles.
He's very endearing and has bonded with the whole family. But the life of a parrot in the wild is dramatically different from the life he'll have here in my home. The life of an African Grey in the rain forest of Central Africa in a flock of 500, flying at 60 KPH, can never be given back to Shanti. We'll have to make the best of what we have. Together.
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