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TiongsonSeptember 12, 2023 * Coronavirus News Birds with more complex vocal skills are better problem-solvers Researchers put more than 200 birds through a gauntlet of brainteasers A photo of a small gray tufted titmouse bird sitting on a person's hand. The tufted titmouse (Baeolophus bicolor) can learn more than 63 vocalizations and was the top problem-solver in a new study that links bird intelligence with vocal learning. M. Couture Share this: * Email * Facebook * Twitter * Pinterest * Pocket * Reddit * Print By Darren Incorvaia September 14, 2023 at 2:00 pm By now, it's no secret that the phrase "bird brain" should be a compliment, not an insult. Some of our feathered friends are capable of complex cognitive tasks, including tool use (SN: 2/10/23). Among the brainiest feats that birds are capable of is vocal learning, or the ability to learn to mimic sounds and use them to communicate. In birds, this leads to beautiful calls and songs; in humans, it leads to language. The best avian vocal learners, such as crows and parrots, also tend to be considered the most intelligent birds. So it's natural to think that the two traits could be linked. But studies with smart birds have found conflicting evidence. Although vocal learning may be linked with greater cognitive capacity in some species, the opposite relationship seems to hold true in others. Now, a massive analysis of 214 birds from 23 species shows that there is indeed a link between vocal learning and at least one advanced cognitive ability -- problem-solving. The study, described in the Sept. 15 Science, is the first to analyze multiple bird species instead of just one. More than 200 birds from 23 species were given different cognitive tests to gauge their intelligence. One of the problem-solving tasks asked birds to pull a cork lid off a glass flask to access a tasty treat (bottom left). Comparing these tests with birds' ability to learn songs and calls showed that the better vocal learners are also better at problem-solving. To compare species, biologist Jean-Nicolas Audet of the Rockefeller University in New York City and colleagues had to devise a way to assess all the birds' vocal learning and cognitive abilities. For vocal learning, the team scoured the scientific literature to find how many songs and calls a particular species could learn, whether it could learn vocalizations throughout its life or just for a set developmental period and whether it could mimic other bird species. "Our novel way of measuring vocal complexity integrates those three features together," Audet says. The researchers next developed cognitive tests that could be adapted for different birds. A test built for a tiny house wren (Troglodytes aedon), for instance, might not work for a bulky mourning dove ( Zenaida macroura). Audet and research assistant Melanie Couture ultimately presented birds with seven cognitive tasks over six days. Four of the tasks tested problem-solving ability. For example, one task involved pulling a cork lid off a flask to access food inside. The other three tasks assessed learning and self-control, other hallmarks of advanced cognition. The team then analyzed whether the bird species with more complex vocal learning abilities, such as bigger song repertoires, mimicry and lifelong learning, also performed better on their intelligence tests. Problem-solving, but not learning or self-control, is strongly associated with more complex vocal learning in birds, the researchers found. "The more advanced vocal learning ability, the more advanced problem-solving skills," says study coauthor Erich Jarvis, a biologist at Rockefeller University. Take the tufted titmouse (Baeolophus bicolor). This species learns around 63 vocalizations and can learn throughout its life. It completed the problem-solving tasks faster than the brown-headed cowbird (Molothrus ater), which learns only about nine vocalizations within a set developmental window. A photo of a white-breasted nuthatch sitting on a person's hand.The white-breasted nuthatch (Sitta carolinensis) was one of the best problem-solvers among birds that can only learn vocalizations at a certain stage of their lives.M. Couture The new finding is a "very convincing, positive result," says William Searcy, a biologist at the University of Miami who studies birdsong. Audet's team also found a link between complex vocal learning, better problem-solving ability and bigger brains relative to body size. That could partially explain the result, Searcy says. A bigger brain is likely necessary to excel at both vocal learning and problem-solving. The researchers saved the brains of some of the birds, so they next hope to search for the genes underlying the linked traits. That work could have implications for scientists' understanding of how human language evolved. "There is a chance that we will discover genes related to problem-solving and vocal learning that are possibly also used in humans for those same behaviors," Audet says. Questions or comments on this article? E-mail us at feedback@sciencenews.org | Reprints FAQ Citations J-N. Audet, M. Couture and E.D. Jarvis. Songbird species that display more-complex vocal learning are better problem-solvers and have larger brains. Science. Vol. 381, September 15, 2023, p. 1170. doi: 10.1126/science.adh3428. W.A. Searcy and S. Nowicki. Birdsong learning, avian cognition and the evolution of language. Animal Behaviour. Vol. 151, May 6, 2019, p. 217. doi: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2019.01.015. This article was supported by readers like you. Our mission is to provide accurate, engaging news of science to the public. That mission has never been more important than it is today. As a nonprofit news organization, we cannot do it without you. Your support enables us to keep our content free and accessible to the next generation of scientists and engineers. Invest in quality science journalism by donating today. Donate Now [cards-330x66] Related Stories 1. image of a downy woodpecker (gray body, black and white wings, and a red crest) pecking a tree Animals Drumming woodpeckers use similar brain regions as songbirds By Darren IncorvaiaSeptember 20, 2022 2. a brown bird perches on a branch and sings Animals Some birds learn to recognize calls while still in their eggs By Lesley Evans OgdenSeptember 16, 2021 3. photograph of a roadrunner with a lizard in its beak Animals Hundreds of new genomes help fill the bird 'tree of life' By Jake BuehlerNovember 17, 2020 From the Nature Index Paid Content Science News Science News was founded in 1921 as an independent, nonprofit source of accurate information on the latest news of science, medicine and technology. 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