(Phys.org)—A pair of researchers with Leiden University in The Netherlands has found via experimentation that at least two types of birds are able to learn the rules that define abstract grammatical structures. In their ...
Songbirds join humans in the select few animal groups that are "vocal learners"—that is, they must learn from adults of their own species to develop a normal ability to speak (or sing, as the case may be). Because the brain ...
Plants & Animals
Nov 5, 2015
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In female songbirds, brain areas responsible for song learning are usually smaller and have fewer neurons compared to males. However, in many species such as the blue-capped cordon bleu, females possess an elaborate song. ...
Plants & Animals
Nov 4, 2015
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34
Rationally speaking, most people know that random, violent crime is rare. But that doesn't keep them from getting the creeps when they walk through a parking structure or other public place that's not well-lit or crowded.
Plants & Animals
Jul 24, 2015
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101
Humans take for granted the noise and lights associated with cities and other developments across the landscape. For other creatures, these noisy and bright conditions lead to changes in behavior and activity such as the ...
Evolution
Jul 14, 2015
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52
Male Java sparrows may coordinate their bill-clicking sounds with the notes of their song, according to a study published May 20, 2015 in the open-access journal PLOS ONE by Masayo Soma and Chihiro Mori from Hokkaido University, ...
Plants & Animals
May 20, 2015
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Great tits living next to each other may sing their songs at significantly different rates, more or less frequently, as compared to non-neighboring birds, according to a study published February 18, 2015 in the open-access ...
Plants & Animals
Feb 18, 2015
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28
(Phys.org) —A team of researchers with members from Germany, the U.S. and Austria has found that male hermit thrush appear to sing following a harmonic series similar to the way humans produce music. In their paper published ...
Biologists at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill may have good news for male songbirds: You might not have to be a stud to attract a mate.
Plants & Animals
Oct 16, 2014
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Nearly one-third of songbird species across North America are experiencing long-term declines. Scientists have spent years researching potential causes for these population declines, focusing on the birds when they have just ...
Plants & Animals
May 8, 2014
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