Which bird solved a five-part locking mechanism at the Vienna Goffin Lab?

The Tanimbar corella solved a five-part locking mechanism at the Vienna Goffin Lab. The birds faced a transparent puzzle box containing a food reward, with five different interlocking devices that had to be released in sequence.

The 2013 study involved ten untrained Goffin’s cockatoos, another common name for the Tanimbar corella. Researchers from the University of Oxford, the University of Vienna and the Max Planck Institute found that the birds could work through the mechanical sequence rather than simply repeat one trained action.

The strongest evidence for flexible problem-solving came when researchers changed or reordered parts of the mechanism. The cockatoos rapidly adjusted their behavior, suggesting sensitivity to how the components affected one another. This is why the result is usually discussed as evidence of technical intelligence, not merely persistence.

A common mix-up is confusing the species with other clever parrots, such as the kea or hyacinth macaw. The famous Vienna lockbox experiment specifically involved Goffin’s cockatoos, whose scientific name is Cacatua goffiniana.