CANBERRA, March 3 (Xinhua) -- Scientists in Australia have successfully restored the lost traditional song of the critically endangered regent honeyeater, offering renewed hope for the survival of one of Australia's most endangered birds.
Researchers from the Australian National University (ANU) and the Taronga Conservation Society Australia revealed how targeted "song tutoring" at Taronga Zoo in Sydney and Taronga Western Plains Zoo in Dubbo in the state of New South Wales has revived a disappearing cultural trait vital to the species' survival, an ANU statement said Tuesday.
Birdsong helps attract mates, defend territories and maintain social bonds, and many species learn their songs from experienced "tutors," it said, adding that without them, young birds often develop incorrect or simplified songs that seriously reduce breeding success.
With fewer than 250 individuals remaining in the wild, the regent honeyeater has faced not only population decline but also cultural erosion, according to the study published in Nature Scientific Reports.
"Everything we know about the function of birdsong suggests that having a cohesive dialect will be critical to the success of the reintroduction program and the survival of the species," said the study's lead author Daniel Appleby from ANU College of Systems and Society.
Using recordings and direct exposure to just two wild-born male tutors, scientists taught young zoo-bred males the species' traditional wild song that has now been lost from the wild populations and was becoming increasingly simplified as numbers declined.
More than half of the zoo population now sings the traditional song, which researchers hope will help to stabilize and even rebuild song culture in the natural population and boost breeding in the wild after release.
The study highlights the importance of conserving not only animal genetics but also their learned traditions to prevent extinction, the researchers said. ■
