Date: May 12, 2016
Source: Leiden, Universiteit
It may well be that only male
zebra finches can sing, but the females are faster at learning to discriminate
sounds. Leiden researchers publish their findings in the scientific journal Animal Behaviour.
The scientists reached this
conclusion after a meta-analysis of different experiments with the songbirds.
Combining the results of 14 separate studies gave them a population of 87 birds
to work from. The aim of the research was to find out why some birds could
recognize sounds faster than others.
Go and no-go
The zebra finches heard one of
two sound types after pecking at an LED sensor. If -- after hearing the right
sound (the 'go sound') -- they pecked on the sensor again, they received a
reward. Pecking on the sensor after hearing the so-called no-go sound gave them
no reward, and even 'punished' the birds by leaving them in the dark for a
short while.
Dr Pralle Kriengwatana: 'Our
meta-analysis shows that female zebra finches learn to discriminate sounds
faster, which is surprising considering that females don't sing. On the basis
that male songbirds usually sing more than female songbirds, scientists have
long assumed that the males must also be better at recognising and learning
song (and perhaps also other sounds). It now seems that sex differences in
producing complex sounds do not necessarily correlate exactly with the ability
to perceive and discriminate these complex sounds.'
Cause unknown
The scientists are still in the
dark about the reasons why females learn better than males, although the female
hormone oestrogen may play a role. According to Kriengwatana, further research
is needed to determine the precise cause of the sex differences.
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