Birds, and in particular the group we have referred to as "sound imitators," have an astonishing talent for mimicry. This demonstrates that these creatures have a definite consciousness, for in order to use their talent, birds have to know what they want to imitate, the word's stress and intonation, evaluate its timing very carefully and then make a number of adjustments. Moreover, a bird must have a good memory to be able to remember and repeat the sounds it has heard.

At this point, it shouldn't be overlooked that mimicry is a skill that even the majority of intelligent, conscious people do not possess. It is impossible or somewhat difficult for many of us to imitate songs or sounds we've heard in a way that's true to the original. People who are talented mimics attract much attention and are praised for their keen powers of observation. But all members of a given species of parrot use their skills of mimicry effortlessly-another indication that they possess consciousness.

It should be pointed out, however, that the "consciousness" possessed by birds does not resemble ours. Man has skills that no other living creatures have such as the ability to think, make comparisons, understand, learn, draw conclusions from what we've learned, and use that knowledge for innovation. Above all, man is a being who is answerable to God for his deeds. In a verse of the Qur'an, God conveys the following:

It is He Who created the heavens and the Earth in six days when His Throne was on the water, in order to test which of you has the best actions… (Qur'an, 11:7)

As the verse says, man is responsible to God:

Then [He] formed him and breathed His Spirit into him and gave you hearing, sight and hearts... (Qur'an, 32:9)

This conveys that man is given a "soul" by God, and will have to account for his deeds in this world. Birds and other animals do not have this responsibility; they merely have to carry out the tasks God has inspired in them and are instruments through which we may witness His supreme power. In a verse of the Qur'an, God declares the following:

The lyrebird is one of the world's best imitators, able to mimic the sounds of twelve other species of birds. It can also reproduce the sound of a camera shutter, a circuit breaker, a car's engine, and an alarm clock. It can even imitate the sound of an electric saw being used nearby. The Orphean warbler can imitate the sounds produced by 70 other species of bird.

 

Do you not see that everyone in the heavens and Earth glorifies God, as do the birds with their outspread wings? Each one knows its prayer and glorification. God knows what they do. (Qur'an, 24:41)