Birdsong and Whale Songs Share a Surprising Similarity With Human Language

Birdsong and whale songs share striking similarities with human language, according to researchers studying animal communication. When examining how birds like the Bengalese finch teach their complex songs to offspring, scientists from Teikyo University in Japan found that the mathematical patterns used in the birds' songs mirrored those found in human speech. This shared patterning, known as Zipf's law, makes complex communication easier to learn and is typically passed down through generations.

The study, a collaborative effort between various international research organizations, utilized insights from how human babies learn language to analyze birdsong data collected from Japanese Bengalese finches. The researchers observed that the birds' notes formed coherent sequences following distinct patterns, similar to how words are structured in human language.

Lead researcher Simon Kirby of the University of Edinburgh's School of Philosophy acknowledged the long-held belief that language is unique to humans. However, by applying knowledge of human language acquisition to bird songs, the team discovered a surprising commonality between these seemingly unrelated species separated by over 300 million years of evolution.

Study co-author Kazuo Okanoya from Teikyo University also noted the unexpected discovery, stating that it revealed yet another property that Bengalese finch song shares with whale song and human language.

The findings suggest that traits typically attributed to human language may not be exclusive to our species and could be more universal and linked to evolution. Songbirds and humpback whales both transmit their specific communication processes culturally and across generations, refining them over time to make learning their "language" as easy as possible.

Previous research supports the theory that the fundamentals of sophisticated communication don't rely solely on a species' abilities but rather on the role communication and transgenerational learning play within the species.

This discovery could lead to a broader understanding of language, emphasizing that humans are not alone in possessing culturally evolving communication systems. As study co-author Inbal Arnon from the University of Edinburgh and the Hebrew University of Jerusalem put it, "We humans are the only species with language, but we share the planet with several others who also have culturally evolving communication. And this may make us more similar to one another than we previously thought."