Without the masters who teach him the "love songs", the already critical situation of the regent's honeybee gets worse and worse.
He is about to end up run over, his mother saves himIn nature there are only a few hundred of the regent's honeycomb and without the masters to teach him the "love songs", the already critical situation of these birds is getting worse and worse.
The Regent's Honey Sucker (Anthochaera phrygia), a species of bird endemic to southeastern Australia, classified as a species in critical danger of extinction, is forgetting to sing due to the great decline of its population. According to a study recently published in the scientific journal Proceeding of the Royal Society B, the cause lies in the fact that young birds no longer find adult teachers who show them the "love songs" for mating.
Researchers from the Australian National University (ANU) explain that, while in areas inhabited by a large number of the regent's honeybones, males are able to emit "rich and complex songs", in regions where the population of the species has decreased, instead the males emit only simple tones or - sadder still - imitate the songs of other species because they have never taught them theirs.
“This lack of ability to communicate with one's own species is unprecedented in a wild animal. The regent's number of honeyblowers is so low that many young birds cannot find adult species to serve as teachers, ”says Dejan Stojanovic, co-author of the study.
The fact that they cannot learn to sing correctly seriously affects their ability to communicate, which in turn could accelerate population decline. Furthermore, releasing specimens in captivity to solve the problem would not be useful since their song differs from that of the wild population, so they may not be attractive enough for breeding.
“A love song increases the chances of songbirds' reproduction. Females avoid males who sing badly, ”explains biologist Ross Crates.
For now, the researchers are using audio recordings of other honeybones singing to try to teach the sounds to the captive population, in hopes of helping the conservation of their species, whose wild population, according to the IUCN Red List, is estimated to be around. 350 specimens.
For many of us, birdsong represents a beautiful natural soundtrack and a way to connect with nature, for them it is a vital tool, synonymous with culture and survival, losing it means… getting lost forever.
Fonte: Royal Society B / IUCN Red List
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