Ximena Nelson
Bruce lost his upper beak in an accident when he was very young.
Ximena Nelson
Alex Grabham
Bruce “jousting” with another male.
Alex Grabham
Ximena Nelson
Bruce runs and jumps to “joust” with opponents from a distance.
Ximena Nelson
Bruce “jousting” with another male.
Alex Grabham
Bruce runs and jumps to “joust” with opponents from a distance.
Ximena Nelson
The key to Bruce’s success and overall chill mood? His unique beak-jousting technique, which enabled him to quickly displace his rivals. At close range, Bruce would extend his neck to thrust at opponents, adding a run or jump to the motion when attacking from farther away. Other non-disabled males mostly bit downward onto an opponent’s neck, while Bruce mostly engaged in forward thrusts and targeted the back, head, wings, and legs of his opponents. He kicked at the same rate as other kea but used his half-beak much more frequently.
According to the authors, there are only two other cases in the scientific literature that are comparable to Bruce’s ingenious adaptation. In one case, the late Jane Goodall observed an alpha male chimpanzee named Fabian who lost the use of his arm due to polio; his brother became the new alpha male. Fabian managed to achieve “beta” status via association, and also by developing unusual charging displays. The other case concerned an old Japanese macaque whose ability to walk gradually deteriorated; the macaque maintained his alpha status by allying with the alpha female. But Bruce achieved his alpha status on his own through dominance, not via a useful alliance.
“Bruce shows us that behavioral innovation can help bypass physical disability, at least in species with the cognitive flexibility to develop new solutions,” said co-author Alexander Grabham of Te Whare Wānanga o Waitaha/University of Canterbury in New Zealand. “Previous research has shown links between large brains, behavioral flexibility, and survival at the species level. Bruce demonstrates how those links play out in a single individual across traits that matter day-to-day, such as social dominance. Our findings also raise an important welfare question: if a disabled animal can innovate its way to success, well-intentioned interventions like prosthetics might not always improve their quality of life. Sometimes the animal can do better without help.”
Current Biology, 2026. DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2026.03.004 (About DOIs).