Parrots consistently top the charts of the world’s smartest animals. A new discovery published by the Royal Society Open Science reveals to us what sets the intelligent individual monk parakeet (和尚鹦鹉) apart in a group.
Previously, it was thought that these birds introduced themselves to others with a sort of “catchphrase” that distinguished their identity. However, after running the vocalizations (发声) collected in this study through a machine learning program, a team led by Simeon Smeele, a doctoral student at Aarhus University in Denmark, found that the birds actually had “voiceprints” like humans that identify themselves in the group.
The researchers studied thousands of monk parakeet vocalizations from hundreds of birds in Barcelona across two years and ran these recordings through the program that identifies small differences in their calls.
“The voiceprint is the underlying quality of a voice that you can recognize in humans, and this is the first time that has been shown in another vocal learner,” Smeele said. For example, the voiceprint of your father is how you know it’s his voice, even if he isn’t present. “This is what I think could explain how they recognize each other, because it can be stable over very long periods of time.” he added.
“This shows that these birds also have that sort of information that they might be using in their complicated social interactions,” said Emily Du Val, Ph.D., a behavioral ecologist at Florida State University. “Research into animal communication has the potential to motivate the public into action to conserve animals. Recognizing who each other is and understanding how they interact with one another are important for human life,” she said.
This model can potentially be applied to other animals with vocal recognition like bottlenose dolphins, bat s and elephants. Future research will look into whether these voiceprints are recognized by all parakeets in the community or only a circle of close relatives.
12. What helps the monk parakeets recognize each other?
A.The catchphrase. | B.The intelligence. |
C.The voiceprint. | D.The communication. |
13. How did the researchers conduct the study?
A.By combining “catchphrase” with “voiceprints”. |
B.By keeping track of the monk parakeets’ relatives. |
C.By collecting vocalizations and identifying their differences. |
D.By comparing humans’ voiceprints with monk parakeets’. |
14. What will the future study focus on?
A.The information that voiceprints can express. |
B.The potential influence that voiceprints can bring. |
C.The animals among which voiceprints are identified. |
D.The range where parakeets’ voiceprints are recognized. |
15. What can be the best title for the text?
A.Mon k Parakeets Are Great Vocal Learners |
B.Mon k Parakeets Resemble Humans in Communication |
C.“Voiceprints” Are Found in Animals’ Social Interactions |
D.“Voiceprints” Help Monk Parakeets Identify Themselves |