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  3. Crows, magpies and their relatives are known for their exceptional intelligence, which allows them to solve complex problems, us

Crows, magpies and their relatives are known for their exceptional intelligence, which allows them to solve complex problems, us

admin2022-10-13  73
问题     Crows, magpies and their relatives are known for their exceptional intelligence, which allows them to solve complex problems, use tools or outsmart their conspecifics (同种个体). One capability, however, that we humans value highly, seems to be missing from their behavioral repertoire; generosity. An international team of researchers could now demonstrate that the social life of corvids (鸦科的鸟类) is a crucial factor for whether the birds benefit their group members or not.
    "Spontaneous generosity, without immediately expecting something in return, is a cornerstone of human society whose evolutionary foundations are still not fully understood. One hypothesis postulates (假设) that raising offspring cooperatively may have promoted the emergence of a tendency to willingly benefit group members in early human groups. Another hypothesis speculates that only increased tolerance towards group members and a reduced level of aggression made such generous behavior possible. While researchers found evidence for both hypotheses when investigating other non-human primates, results from other animal taxa (分类群) have so far been missing, " explains lead author Lisa Horn.
    That is why Horn and her colleagues tested generous behavior in multiple species from the crow family. Some of the tested species raise their offspring cooperatively, while others do not. Additionally, some of the species nest in close proximity with their conspecifics, thereby demonstrating their high levels of tolerance, while other species jealously guard their territories against other members of their own species. In the experiment, the birds operated a seesaw mechanism by landing on a perch, which brought food into reach of their group members. If the birds wanted to grab the food themselves, they would have had to leave the perch and the seesaw would tilt back, thereby moving the food out of reach again. Since the birds thus could not get anything for themselves the authors argued that only truly generous birds would continue to deliver food to their group members throughout multiple experimental sessions.
    It became evident that this behavior was displayed most strongly by these corvid species that work together to raise their offspring cooperatively. Among male birds, the researchers also found evidence for the hypothesis that high tolerance towards conspecifics is important for the emergence of generous behavior. Males from species that commonly nest in very close proximity to each other were particularly generous. These results seem to support the hypotheses that raising offspring cooperatively and increased levels of tolerance may have promoted the emergence of generous tendencies not only in humans, but also in other animals. "What fascinates me the most is that in animals that are so different from us evolutionary mechanisms very similar to the ones in our human ancestors seem to have promoted the emergence of generous behavior, " concludes Horn.  
What is the function of the seesaw mechanism in the experiment?
选项 A、To help the group of birds find food.
B、To stop a bird from reaching the food.
C、To enable a bird to feed other individuals.
D、To encourage the birds to be more generous.
答案C
解析 由题干中的seesaw mechanism定位到第三段第四句。细节辨认题。由定位句可知，受试的这些鸟通过降落在栖木上来启动跷跷板机制，从而将食物带到它们的群体成员够得着的地方。C“使鸟能够投喂其他个体”与文中意思相符，故为正确答案。
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