Language of Birds

Dr. Toshitaka Suzuki, an animal linguist at the University of Tokyo, proved that a Japanese bird called the tit uses syntax in its calls. By combining two different sounds, the birds are able to communicate messages such as the location of a food source and a warning to other birds of the presence of a predator. The birds use syntax because the sounds that are combined to produce a message must be used in a specific order.

Dr. Suzuki's research illustrated that the order of the sounds is important to the birds. It is a fundamental aspect of the structure of human language. For example, the sentence "Alex sees Helen" has a different meaning from "Helen sees Alex".

The Japanese tit uses a variety of different calls. One is to signal danger and another is to call other birds. One call warns the birds to approach cautiously because of the presence of a predator, but reversing the other does not produce the same response. This confirms that the birds understand the sequence of the sounds.

This research suggests that the ability to combine sounds into meaningful sequences also exists in birds. In other words, they have the cognitive ability to merge sounds in a specific order. Dr. Suzuki's work proves that they use syntax to communicate with one another.