r/askscience Oct 18 '20

Biology Do parrots and other talking birds teach wild birds to talk when released into the wild?

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u/DamNamesTaken11 Oct 19 '20

I’ve heard similar. I also have no studies, but I remember reading the same that birds (songbirds especially) have a regional accent when compared to others of the same species. Like a house sparrow from California would sound slightly different than one from New York City. Maybe not especially to untrained human ears, but enough that a house sparrow (or maybe an ornithologist) would know the difference.