Mimicry is one of the most difficult art forms out there. Some believe, in fact, that all art is mimicry, and the only reason we have diversity in music, acting, comedy, literature, or what have you is that people can only mimic imperfectly.

But there’s one animal that can get it down pat.

The parrot is blessed with the inane ability to copy most sounds it hears. People who wear a parrot tattoo truly understand the splendor of this gift of nature. They dazzle in the parrot’s subtlety of ear and articulation of tongue, and strive to emulate this amazing quality.

Rivaled closely by the raven, crow, and jay, the parrot is possibly the most intelligent bird on the planet. While most species of parrot can imitate, the African grey parrot is even able to associate meanings with words, understand human speech, and form simple sentences. Some parrots are capable of memorizing a vocabulary of over 1,000 words. When you realize that many humans use no more than 200 different words in their day-to-day lives, that figure is downright astounding.

Parrots are also amazing cooperators. They score incredibly high on problem solving tests and, when paired together, they score even higher.

Few people realize the true potential of these birds. Sport a parrot tattoo yourself, and let your inner parrot speak.