Birdsong is often described as music, but is it really? Scientists are still debating the functions of birdsong, but a growing body of research shows that avian species have a strong ability to learn, interpret, and produce songs in a manner similar to our own. Like humans, birds learn songs from each other and practice to perfect them. However, bird calls, which serve as warnings and other forms of direct communication, differ from birdsong. While the difference between music and noise is arbitrary, studies show that birdsong is structurally similar to our own melodies. Birdsong is structured like human music, with tempo, pitch, and timbre that are similar to our own tunes. Other features such as cadence and tension are also used in both birdsong and human music.
Birds change their tempo, pitch, and timbre to sing tunes that resemble our own melodies. Birds can build songs using patterns that are similar to those found in human music. In their 2020 study, scientists compared recordings of thr
