Talking, Psychic Bird?

Recently I promised to discuss another claim of extraordinary abilities in a non-human animal. This time I'm covering N'kisi, a captive bred African Grey Parrot who Rupert Sheldrake claims is not only one of the most impressive language using animals, but is also psychic. From Sheldrake:

N'kisi speaks in sentences, showing a grasp of grammar in formulating his own original expressions. He is capable of actual conversations. He often initiates comments about what we are doing, feeling, looking at, thinking, etc, which is how we discovered his ability to read minds. N'kisi often demonstrates telepathy in spontaneous situations, and also communicates love, compassion, and a keen sense of humor.

N'kisi appears to telepathically "surf" the leading edge of Aimee's consciousness, responding to the spontaneous moment of discovery rather than to any consciously projected thoughts.

So let's think about this. If parrots are capable of mind-reading humans, why have they not developed things like technology and civilisation? More importantly why, if the parrots are capable of reading each others' minds, did natural selection not favour this silent telepathic communication, over the loud squawks for which parrots are famous? A forest full of mute, telepathic parrots would certainly be much harder for predators to catch.

Globally, parrots are the most endangered of all birds, with the greatest number of species currently facing extinction due to poaching and habitat destruction. We hope our work will help people to realize the amazing abilities and awareness of these intelligent birds, and encourage greater care of these precious beings and the planetary environment we share.

And why, if parrots are this amazing, are they not fighting against us, waging war in those areas where humans and parrots interact or at the very least demanding to be released from their cages around the globe, in an act of parrot emancipation?

Finally then, no matter what statistical proofs Rupert Sheldrake provides for his claims, surely they are not enough to accept his dubious conclusions. The fact of the matter is that we have a researcher who is predisposed to believing in conscious animals and psychic powers. It doesn't matter that neither is a reality, because there are always people willing to believe in such fantasies.

Expect to see his Zener card tests with Big Bird soon!