Bird calls may speak to origins of human language

October 6, 2025
Velentina Boulter

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https://tinyurl.com/5bkb45ur

Common yellowthroat feeding a juvenile brown-headed cowbird. Credit: Agathman (CC BY-SA 4.0)


An international group of researchers have discovered that birds on opposite sides of the planet produce almost identical ‘whining’ calls when beset by parasitic birds.

The study demonstrates the first known case of animal vocalisation learned from an innate response, indicating that natural selection may have influenced the origin of vocal language.
“It’s like seeing how evolution can enable species to give learned meanings to sounds,” says study co-lead, William Feeney from the Donana Biological Station in Spain.

The researchers observed how more than 20 different bird species from across 4 continents react to brood parasitism, making the study one of the largest and comprehensive on the topic so far.

Brood parasitism occurs when a bird lays their egg in the nest of another species, which forces the host to raise the young at the expense of their own offspring. While cuckoos and cowbirds are the most well-known species that practice brood parasitism, at least 300 species use the strategy in some way.

More:
https://cosmosmagazine.com/nature/birds/bird-calls-origins-language/