Atlantic Puffins use Tools and Join the Ever Growing List of Animals That Use Tools

Key Berry
Jan 2, 2020
2 min read

Updated: Nov 27, 2023

Just when you thought the Atlantic Puffin couldn’t get any cooler, researchers discover puffins use tools, and it’s not just one or two puffins that are exhibiting this behavior. Atlantic Puffins found thousands of kilometers away from each other have all shown to be tool users.https://youtu.be/1i7wFLF0UJE

CHIMPANZEES USING TOOLS

HUMANS USING TOOLS

Since the beginnings of the Stone Age, humans have been using tools like stone knives and axes. Roughly 1.75 million years ago, tool usage exploded in human populations. This was true not only for Homosapien populations but also for other human species that are now extinct, like Homoerectus and the Neanderthals. Humans and chimpanzees, however, are far from the only animals that use tools.

CROWS USING TOOLS

Other birds besides the Atlantic Puffin use tools. Crows are big-time tool users. They use everything from sticks and their own feathers in ingenious ways. They also know how to drop things from high up, like nuts and shells, in an effort to break them open when they hit the ground. Crows also collect things and stash them away in their nests, and have a strange affinity for shiny things like reflective foil, coins, and even jewelry. The strangest things have been found in crows nests. In Newfoundland, crows are also famous for sealing food from unsuspecting humans at local outdoor fish and chip stands. Usually, the way it goes it one crow will distract the humans about to dig into their fish and chips by standing on an adjacent table and even making a few sounds to get their attention while simultaneously one or two others swoop in from the sides to seal their lunch. Crows are really smart.