Monk parakeets are known for their talkative nature and their ability to imitate sounds, including the human voice. A team of scientists from the Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior observed 337 monk parakeets for two years in Spain. The researchers said on May 7, 2025, that this species of parrot is not only capable of imitation, but monk parakeets also acquire richer vocal diversity the more they socialize with others. It appears they even try to modify their vocalizations to differentiate themselves from other members of the group.
The team of scientists published its study on May 7, 2025, in the peer-reviewed journal The Royal Society.
Monk parakeets in Europe
Although monk parakeets are native to South America, they are quite common in Europe. In fact, they live by the thousands in Spain. According to the latest national census of the monk parakeet, which SEO/BirdLife published in 2015, the count totaled more than 7,000 nests and a population of between 16,000 and 20,000 individuals. The most of them live in major cities such as Madrid, Barcelona and Malaga.
These bright green birds are abundant in urban parks. And that gives scientists an opportunity to study them and their group behavior. According to the scientists, social networks shape the vocal diversity of monk parakeets.
Indeed, monk parakeets are sociable and talkative animals. Interestingly, in Spain, this species is known as cotorras argentinas. The word cotorra refers to a person who never stops talking!
The advantages of living in groups
Social animals enjoy certain advantages by living in groups. Among other things, animals with more complex social lives tend to have more sophisticated forms of communication. For example, dolphins and bonobos have rich communication systems. And humans also learn new words and expressions when they hear other people speak.
The new study on wild parrots, specifically the monk parakeet, shows a similarly rich language. These birds thrive in large colonies where they communicate with each other through numerous distinctive sounds. These communities gave scientists a chance to understand the interplay of individual social relationships with vocal variety.
The scientists observed 337 monk parakeets for several months over two years, documenting their social life and recording all their screeches, squawks and whistles. They obtained a total of 5,599 vocalizations. The team examined these calls in terms of repertoire diversity (how many different sounds a bird can make) and contact-call diversity (how much this specific type of call differs).
They also mapped the birds’ social networks, analyzing everything from the frequency with which they interacted with others to the strength of their relationships. From this information, the team concluded that parakeets living in larger groups produced a wider variety sounds.
Other interesting discoveries from the study
The scientists also made another finding. They discovered that, interestingly, females had a more diverse repertoire than males. Lead author Simeon Smeele said this is unusual for birds:
This research is a really important first step. It really looks like there are some call types that are used uniquely in social situations. And it’s really interesting to see that females appear to produce more of these, suggesting they are the more social sex.
Another interesting finding is that parrots in more central positions in the social structure (those that were more influential in the group and interacted with more individuals) tended to have more diverse vocal repertoires. That is, the most sociable individuals seemed to have a larger vocabulary than the less sociable ones. Smeele adds:
What I find really exciting is that we were able to link what individuals say to very specific levels of sociality. For example, close friends that allowed each other to approach within pecking distance sounded less like each other, as if they were trying to sound unique in their little gang.
Why is this study about monk parakeets important?
By comparing these social animals with ourselves, we can learn a lot. After all, we also enrich our vocabulary by listening to and speaking with other people. And at the same time, we acquire a unique way of expressing ourselves that distinguishes us from others.
These results shed light on how sociability might have driven the evolution of complex communication and, ultimately, human language. Previous research has linked sociability to a more diverse repertoire in species ranging from Carolina chickadees to marmosets. Smeele said:
The next big step is to better understand what each of the sounds mean, a real mammoth task, since most of the social squawking happens in large groups with many individuals talking at the same time!
Bottom line: A new study found that the more sociable monk parakeets are, the more vocal diversity they gain. More about the talkative monk parakeet here.
Source: The effect of social structure on vocal flexibility in monk parakeets
Via the Max Planck Institute for Animal Behavior
Read more: Bonobo chatter shares a unique feature with human speech
Read more: Will humpback whales train us to communicate with aliens?
The post Monk parakeets: the more social, the richer their language first appeared on EarthSky.
from EarthSky https://ift.tt/ent67bs
Monk parakeets are known for their talkative nature and their ability to imitate sounds, including the human voice. A team of scientists from the Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior observed 337 monk parakeets for two years in Spain. The researchers said on May 7, 2025, that this species of parrot is not only capable of imitation, but monk parakeets also acquire richer vocal diversity the more they socialize with others. It appears they even try to modify their vocalizations to differentiate themselves from other members of the group.
The team of scientists published its study on May 7, 2025, in the peer-reviewed journal The Royal Society.
Monk parakeets in Europe
Although monk parakeets are native to South America, they are quite common in Europe. In fact, they live by the thousands in Spain. According to the latest national census of the monk parakeet, which SEO/BirdLife published in 2015, the count totaled more than 7,000 nests and a population of between 16,000 and 20,000 individuals. The most of them live in major cities such as Madrid, Barcelona and Malaga.
These bright green birds are abundant in urban parks. And that gives scientists an opportunity to study them and their group behavior. According to the scientists, social networks shape the vocal diversity of monk parakeets.
Indeed, monk parakeets are sociable and talkative animals. Interestingly, in Spain, this species is known as cotorras argentinas. The word cotorra refers to a person who never stops talking!
The advantages of living in groups
Social animals enjoy certain advantages by living in groups. Among other things, animals with more complex social lives tend to have more sophisticated forms of communication. For example, dolphins and bonobos have rich communication systems. And humans also learn new words and expressions when they hear other people speak.
The new study on wild parrots, specifically the monk parakeet, shows a similarly rich language. These birds thrive in large colonies where they communicate with each other through numerous distinctive sounds. These communities gave scientists a chance to understand the interplay of individual social relationships with vocal variety.
The scientists observed 337 monk parakeets for several months over two years, documenting their social life and recording all their screeches, squawks and whistles. They obtained a total of 5,599 vocalizations. The team examined these calls in terms of repertoire diversity (how many different sounds a bird can make) and contact-call diversity (how much this specific type of call differs).
They also mapped the birds’ social networks, analyzing everything from the frequency with which they interacted with others to the strength of their relationships. From this information, the team concluded that parakeets living in larger groups produced a wider variety sounds.
Other interesting discoveries from the study
The scientists also made another finding. They discovered that, interestingly, females had a more diverse repertoire than males. Lead author Simeon Smeele said this is unusual for birds:
This research is a really important first step. It really looks like there are some call types that are used uniquely in social situations. And it’s really interesting to see that females appear to produce more of these, suggesting they are the more social sex.
Another interesting finding is that parrots in more central positions in the social structure (those that were more influential in the group and interacted with more individuals) tended to have more diverse vocal repertoires. That is, the most sociable individuals seemed to have a larger vocabulary than the less sociable ones. Smeele adds:
What I find really exciting is that we were able to link what individuals say to very specific levels of sociality. For example, close friends that allowed each other to approach within pecking distance sounded less like each other, as if they were trying to sound unique in their little gang.
Why is this study about monk parakeets important?
By comparing these social animals with ourselves, we can learn a lot. After all, we also enrich our vocabulary by listening to and speaking with other people. And at the same time, we acquire a unique way of expressing ourselves that distinguishes us from others.
These results shed light on how sociability might have driven the evolution of complex communication and, ultimately, human language. Previous research has linked sociability to a more diverse repertoire in species ranging from Carolina chickadees to marmosets. Smeele said:
The next big step is to better understand what each of the sounds mean, a real mammoth task, since most of the social squawking happens in large groups with many individuals talking at the same time!
Bottom line: A new study found that the more sociable monk parakeets are, the more vocal diversity they gain. More about the talkative monk parakeet here.
Source: The effect of social structure on vocal flexibility in monk parakeets
Via the Max Planck Institute for Animal Behavior
Read more: Bonobo chatter shares a unique feature with human speech
Read more: Will humpback whales train us to communicate with aliens?
The post Monk parakeets: the more social, the richer their language first appeared on EarthSky.
from EarthSky https://ift.tt/ent67bs
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