Time to talk of other things ...

 The complex world of birdsongs and mimicry Some years ago, I came across a fascinating study by BBC on birdsongs that showed the human ear could only detect a subset of the frequencies - by shifting the audio waveform to a human audible frequency it was clear that we were listening to just the tip of the proverbial iceberg. That got me thinking - how complex is the world of birdsongs? Birdsongs are traditionally defined as the long, often complex learned vocalizations produced mostly by males but also by females to attract mates (typically only during mating season) and defend their territories (year-round). In contrast, bird calls are usually shorter, simpler, innately known (not learned) sounds for more discrete functions, such as signalling about predators and food.  Analysis of Parus minor , aka Oriental tit, bird calls by Toshitaka Suzuki and his colleagues at The Graduate University for Advanced Studies in Japan show that the shorter coded message involves syntax, or ...