Birds Slur Their Songs When Drunk, Too

[Buster's Uncle]

Birds Slur Their Songs When Drunk, Too
ABC News
ALYSSA NEWCOMB  December‎ ‎30‎, ‎2014






It seems birds, like humans, also have a penchant for drunk singing.

A group of scientists gave some zebra finches spiked drinks and found that while the buzzed birds didn't fly around willy-nilly while drunk, they certainly sounded sloshed when they sang.

Zebra finches were chosen for the study because scientists said the birds learn a song "in a manner analogous to how humans learn speech."

After the finches readily knocked back a few bird-sized drinks, the group of researchers at the Oregon Health & Science University found the birds' learned song had an altered acoustic structure, according to their findings, which were published in PLOS ONE.

Certain syllables also sounded different when the birds were under the influence, much like plenty of the crowd one would see at their local karaoke night.

The study could help scientists learn more about how alcohol effects the human brain and learned motor behaviors.


https://www.yahoo.com/tech/s/birds-slur-songs-drunk-too-182742996--abc-news-tech.html