Today we're going to cover a biology topic, one that I have personally wondered for a long time. The question: how can parrots (and other birds) speak English?
Well, they don't have vocal cords. What they have learned to do is change the shape of their trachea and blow air over it, producing sound. Humans can do this too; it's called whistling. So yes, parrots aren't talking in the usual way, they are really just whistling in a special way.
All parrots are created equal, but some whistle more equally than others. The African Gray Parrot is considered the best species in speaking English, besides humans. Here's one:
Although they're pretty, there doesn't seem to be an advantage to talking and imitating humans. What's it good for? Well, no one really knows. Some tests have pointed to them using speech for problem solving. They have also been observed imitating other species of birds in the wild, a useful disguise to fool predators. Others suggest it's to separate the flock from strangers. Some other hypotheses suggest that it's used to mark territory, to help other birds not get lost, or just a feature that was naturally selected and evolved.
Last question (yes, I know this is a short post, but no one knows a lot about this). Do they actually understand English? Scientists disagree with each other, but some experiments hinted that they actually do understand what they're saying, such as a parrot labeling things using the human language. It's hard to tell imitating and learning apart, however.
Thanks for reading! I know this is a short post, but not a lot of knowledge is actually known about this. As I mentioned before, geology is next. See you in the next post!
Until next time,
Ben's jamin'
Benjamin
P.S. Make sure you check out John's math blog at http://johncooksmathblog.blogspot.com.
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