Birdtalk
As is wont for The New Yorker, this article is long, and it is particularly fascinating, so it is hard to resist quoting many of its more breathtaking revelations:
"How Scientists Started to Decode Birdsong: Language is said to make us human. What if birds talk, too?" By Rivka Galchen, The New Yorker (October 14, 2024)
Of course, we've been through the business of animal communication countless times on Language Log, but where this article differs from previous discussions is that it concentrates on content and consciousness rather than vocables and sounds.
On a drizzly day in Grünau im Almtal, Austria, a gaggle of greylag geese shared a peaceful moment on a grassy field near a stream. One goose, named Edes, was preening quietly; others were resting with their beaks pointed tailward, nestled into their feathers. Then a camouflaged speaker that scientists had placed nearby started to play. First came a recorded honk from an unpartnered male goose named Joshua. Edes went on with his preening. Next came a honk that was lower in pitch than the first, with a slight bray. Edes looked up. As the other geese remained tucked in their warm positions, incurious, Edes scanned the field. He had just heard a recorded “distance call” from his life partner, a female goose whom scientists had named Bon Jovi.
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