Clever Magpie Trades Bottle Caps for Treats

Inventor Hans Forsberg created a wonderfully efficient machine that encourages wild birds to trade in found bottle caps for treats. Forsberg has taken the time to train the birds to put the bottle caps into a receptacle on one side of the machine and then pick up a delicious morsel from the distribution area on the other side. In this instance, a beautiful magpie landed onto the platform, inserted the bottle cap, and then received a just reward in the form of a yummy treat.

Yet another video where the magpies in my garden trades bottle-cap for food. High resolution

Forsberg explained how he trained the birds to work with his machine as well as the mechanics involved in building it.

When a bottle-cap falls through the hole in the center of the board, a small piece of food (peanuts or dog-food) is presented at the food-bowl. My plan is that the magpies will, accidentally push bottle-caps into the hole, and ‘get the idea’.

Here are some early avian interactions with the machine.

via Mike Shouts