WEBVTT - Can Different Species of Birds Understand Each Other?

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to Brainstuff production of I Heart Radio. Hey Brainstuff.

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<v Speaker 1>I'm Lauren Bogelbaum, and this is another classic episode from

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<v Speaker 1>our archives, and this one digs into communication among animals

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<v Speaker 1>and how creatures from different species or even different kingdoms

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<v Speaker 1>can get their messages across. Hey brain Stuff, Lauren Vogelbaum. Here,

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<v Speaker 1>a good birdwatcher can identify the local species not just

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<v Speaker 1>by sight, but also by sound. It's something the Audubon

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<v Speaker 1>Society calls birding by ear. With practice and a good

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<v Speaker 1>field guide, avian enthusiasts learned to recognize the trademark tweets, cheaps,

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<v Speaker 1>and hoots that various birds omit. Mastering this skill requires

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<v Speaker 1>a basic understanding of how and why our feathered friends communicate. Often,

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<v Speaker 1>a given species will use its own distinctive set of sounds,

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<v Speaker 1>like mating calls and territorial threats to get assorted points across.

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<v Speaker 1>Take the rock pigeon. These guys court each other with

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<v Speaker 1>gentle coups and too signal distress. They use a harsh grunt.

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<v Speaker 1>If an individual rock pigeon is to survive and procreate,

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<v Speaker 1>it must be able to recognize both vocalizations. But do

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<v Speaker 1>a pigeons noises mean anything to passing crows or cardinals.

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<v Speaker 1>Can birds understand the calls made by other species. We

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<v Speaker 1>recently discussed this topic with Robert D. McGrath, an ornithologist

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<v Speaker 1>and behavioral ecologist at the Australian National University. McGrath has

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<v Speaker 1>co authored multiple studies about interspecies communication in birds. Much

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<v Speaker 1>of US research has dealt with avian alarm calls. These

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<v Speaker 1>are the warning cries that birds send out when a

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<v Speaker 1>predator is cited. As McGrath tells us via email, just

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<v Speaker 1>about every bird species we have studied locally respond to

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<v Speaker 1>other species alarm calls, and we suspect eavesdropping on other

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<v Speaker 1>species calls is widespread around the globe. Perhaps this is

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<v Speaker 1>not surprising, given that almost all species are vulnerable to

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<v Speaker 1>predators and so should use any available cues that predators

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<v Speaker 1>are around. One good example of this phenomenon can be

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<v Speaker 1>found in the relationship between black cat chicken eas and

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<v Speaker 1>redbreasted nuthatches. The two songbirds have much in common. Both

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<v Speaker 1>species are indigenous to North America and attain similar sizes.

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<v Speaker 1>They're also wary of raptors. When chicken ees see a gosshawk,

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<v Speaker 1>owl or some other winged predator. The birds issue an

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<v Speaker 1>alarm call. Like the t s A, their warnings recognize

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<v Speaker 1>different threat levels. High pitched seat calls are used to

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<v Speaker 1>tip off other birds about a raptor that's flying far overhead.

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<v Speaker 1>The eponymous chicken d E D cry rings out whenever

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<v Speaker 1>a perched raptor is seen nearby. Extra d s are

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<v Speaker 1>added if a killer looks especially dangerous. Research has shown

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<v Speaker 1>that other birds, like red breast did nut hatches, understand

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<v Speaker 1>the chickenese warnings, and with close listening, they can decode

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<v Speaker 1>the exact degree of danger that's being advertised in these

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<v Speaker 1>alarm calls. Clearly, eavesdropping has its benefits. Alarm calls can

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<v Speaker 1>even trigger a response from non avian listeners. The tufted tipmouse,

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<v Speaker 1>for example, is a songbird whose anti raptor warning cries

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<v Speaker 1>send squirrels and chipmunks running amazingly. These mammals are known

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<v Speaker 1>to spread the distress signal by imitating it with their

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<v Speaker 1>own voices. Sparrows, cardinals, and jays will also mimic the

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<v Speaker 1>tipmouse's signature alarm call. Thus, an interspecies chorus heralds the

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<v Speaker 1>arrival of an oncoming threat. Okay, so do birds just

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<v Speaker 1>have an innate understanding of other species alarm calls, or

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<v Speaker 1>do they pick up the skill over time. McGraph says

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<v Speaker 1>that at least in some cases, certain birds actively learn

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<v Speaker 1>to identify the cries. Superb very wrens are a common

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<v Speaker 1>sight on the Gralian National University campus in Canberra. As

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<v Speaker 1>it happens, the school grounds also received plenty of visits

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<v Speaker 1>from a gray bird known as the noisy minor. According

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<v Speaker 1>to McGrath, there's a botanical garden across the street where

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<v Speaker 1>the wrens like to hang out, but the miners avoid it.

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<v Speaker 1>In one of his studies, he was able to demonstrate

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<v Speaker 1>that superb fairy wrens who lived on campus fled when

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<v Speaker 1>a recording of minor alarm calls was played. However, the

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<v Speaker 1>wrens at the botanical garden, where again no miners are present,

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<v Speaker 1>did not react to the same recording. This strongly suggests

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<v Speaker 1>that interspecies call recognition isn't innate, it has to be learned.

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<v Speaker 1>McGrath notes we've subsequently even trained fairy wrens to recognize

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<v Speaker 1>novel sounds as alarm calls by pairing them with the

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<v Speaker 1>presentation of gliding hawk models, which unequivocally shows learning alarm

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<v Speaker 1>calls aren't the only vocalizations that can transcend species. It's

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<v Speaker 1>common for birds to recognize other birds species sounds if

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<v Speaker 1>there's some benefit to recognition. McGrath said. Some species defend

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<v Speaker 1>territories against members of other species and respond to their

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<v Speaker 1>territorial song. Others can recognize contact calls, which helps them

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<v Speaker 1>form mixed species flocks and find food. And then there's

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<v Speaker 1>the cuckoo and notorious brewed parasite Females lay their eggs

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<v Speaker 1>in the nests of other birds, who are then sometimes

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<v Speaker 1>tricked into raising the cuckoo's chicks to pull off the charade.

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<v Speaker 1>Baby cuckoos imitate the begging cries made by infants of

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<v Speaker 1>the host's own species, but these sorts of imitatable cries

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<v Speaker 1>aren't made by single species alone, like chicken ee. The

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<v Speaker 1>name Cuca bura is on Amano peak. It's derived from

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<v Speaker 1>the world famous cackle made by these birds. Hollywood seems

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<v Speaker 1>obsessed with their exotic laugh. Kuga bara cries can be

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<v Speaker 1>heard in the background of such films as Raiders Have

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<v Speaker 1>Lost Arc, The Naked Gun, and assorted Tarzan movies. Today's

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<v Speaker 1>episode is based on the article can different bird species

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<v Speaker 1>talk with each other? On how stuff works dot Com,

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<v Speaker 1>written by Mark Mancini. Brain Stuff is production of I

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<v Speaker 1>Heart Radio in partnership with how stuff works dot Com,

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<v Speaker 1>and it's produced by Tyler Klang and Ramsay YMP four

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<v Speaker 1>More podcasts from my heart Radio, visit the iHeart Radio app,

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<v Speaker 1>Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.