Parrots can learn how to speak different languages like humans

By Mark Waghorn via SWNS

Parrots can learn to talk in different languages just like us, according to new research.

They mimic the speech of humans in any environment - picking up dozens of phrases.

African grey parrots, long understood to be the best at learning sounds, have the largest repertoires, averaging about 60 words.

Cockatoos, Amazons, and Macaws are also excellent mimics, with average repertoires of 20 to 30 words.

The discovery could help save the colorful birds from being wiped out, conservationists said.

Co-author Professor Christine Dahlin of the University of Pittsburgh said: "This research highlights just how much parrots still have to teach us."

The study in the journal Scientific Reports was based on a community science project entitled "What does Polly Say?"

Parrot owners were surveyed on the number of words and phrases, human-like sounds such as whistling a tune - and the use of the noises in context.

It enabled the U.S. team to collect data on almost 900 parrots from 73 species - a sample that would have been impossible in the wild.

Dahlin said: "Approximately 30% of parrot species in the wild are declining to the point of being threatened, endangered or critically endangered, primarily from poaching and habitat loss.

"Without conservation of remaining populations, we risk losing the opportunity to understand the evolution of complex communication in these amazing animals."

Cockatoos, Amazons, and Macaws also were excellent mimics, with average repertoires of 20 to 30 words.

Human language is made possible by an aptitude for vocal learning. Infants hear sounds and words, form memories, and later try to produce those sounds, improving as they grow up.

Most animals cannot learn to imitate sounds at all. Though nonhuman primates can learn how to use innate vocalizations in new ways, they don’t show a similar ability to learn new calls.

Interestingly, a small number of more distant mammal species, including dolphins and bats, do have this capacity.

But among the scattering of nonhuman vocal learners birds win hands - or wings- down.

The calls and songs of parrots have even more in common with human languages - such as conveying information intentionally.

Prof Dahlin and colleagues provide the largest comparative analysis to date - calculating the size of vocabulary for different species.

They found many even use words in appropriate contexts - highlighting the value of crowd-sourced data.

Co-author Professor Lauryn Benedict of the University of Northern Colorado said: "As it turns out, Polly's species might have a strong impact on what she says."

Age and sex are weak predictors. Juveniles expanded their repertoires until they reached maturity - but after that, sizes reached a plateau.

Fifty-year-old birds did not have larger repertoires than five-year-olds. Males and females of most species were equally good mimics.

Exceptions included Budgerigars in which males knew more words. Among Pacific Parrotlets, only males were reported to talk. But in Yellow-headed Amazons, females learned more sounds.

Parrots also have timing. Most (89%) used human mimicry in appropriate contexts - doing so frequently. They learn what to say - and when to say it.

As vocal learners, parrots are important research subjects for understanding the physiological, neurobiological, and evolutionary underpinnings of acoustic communication in nature.

It is clear that both companion and wild parrots use vocal mimicry to navigate their complex social and cognitive worlds.

The species and sex-specific differences documented can spur new avenues of research and lead to an increased appreciation for parrots, said the researchers.