Article
Article
- Psychiatry & Psychology
- Physiological psychology
- Vocal learning in songbirds
- Biology & Biomedicine
- Neuroscience
- Vocal learning in songbirds
DISCLAIMER: This article is being kept online for historical purposes. Though accurate at last review, it is no longer being updated. The page may contain broken links or outdated information.
Vocal learning in songbirds
Article By:
Nick, Theresa A. Brain-Computer Interfaces, DAQRI, Los Angeles, California.
Last reviewed:2016
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1036/1097-8542.YB160500
- Learning phases
- Neuroscience
- Song system in the brain
- Critical period
- Conclusions
- Related Primary Literature
- Additional Reading
Why do babies babble? They are learning to speak. Speech is a complex motor (movement) skill that requires the coordination of many muscles to produce precise sounds that other humans can interpret. Although it is rare, vocal learning has also been reported in other animals, including songbirds, elephants, and dolphins. Scientists have used songbirds to study the learning of vocalizations and motor skills. Humans and songbirds share multiple similarities in vocal learning, such as dedicated brain pathways for the production of vocalizations and the existence of two distinct developmental learning phases. See also: Acoustic phonetics; Animal communication; Bioacoustics, animal; Linguistics; Phonetics; Phonoreception; Speech; Speech perception; Speech recognition
The content above is only an excerpt.
for your institution. Subscribe
To learn more about subscribing to AccessScience, or to request a no-risk trial of this award-winning scientific reference for your institution, fill in your information and a member of our Sales Team will contact you as soon as possible.
to your librarian. Recommend
Let your librarian know about the award-winning gateway to the most trustworthy and accurate scientific information.
About AccessScience
AccessScience provides the most accurate and trustworthy scientific information available.
Recognized as an award-winning gateway to scientific knowledge, AccessScience is an amazing online resource that contains high-quality reference material written specifically for students. Contributors include more than 10,000 highly qualified scientists and 46 Nobel Prize winners.
MORE THAN 8700 articles covering all major scientific disciplines and encompassing the McGraw-Hill Encyclopedia of Science & Technology and McGraw-Hill Yearbook of Science & Technology
115,000-PLUS definitions from the McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Scientific and Technical Terms
3000 biographies of notable scientific figures
MORE THAN 19,000 downloadable images and animations illustrating key topics
ENGAGING VIDEOS highlighting the life and work of award-winning scientists
SUGGESTIONS FOR FURTHER STUDY and additional readings to guide students to deeper understanding and research
LINKS TO CITABLE LITERATURE help students expand their knowledge using primary sources of information