00:00The calls of birds are often what ornithologists first identify before they even see the species
00:08out in the wild. However, that might be changing with regards to some species. Researchers who
00:13were studying the yellow-naped Amazon, a type of parrot indigenous to the Pacific coast,
00:17recently noticed their accents were changing. Birds having regional dialects is nothing new,
00:22but dialectical changes are now occurring within the species in unprecedented ways.
00:26The researchers first noticed the calls of the southern-dwelling yellow-naped Amazon in northern
00:31regions, finding that not only were some of the birds using southern calls, but they were also
00:35bilingual, using the northern ones as well. Experts theorize this is an adaptation, allowing the
00:41parrots to communicate and call birds of both dialects for increased mating opportunities.
00:45And those same scientists say that it's an adaptation which could save the species.
00:49In just the last three generations of these birds, they have seen a 92% drop in their populations
00:54in Central and South America, with the researchers saying that the species' new bilingualism could
01:00actually aid in conservation efforts, explaining in their report that ultimately, monitoring
01:05cultural behaviors such as the rate of change in dialects can help wildlife managers understand
01:10anthropogenic impacts, population dynamics, and conserve species.
Comments