Scientists have discovered that starlings and parrots can imitate the complex sounds of Star Wars droid R2-D2 remarkably well. Their study reveals how the structure of a bird's vocal organ determines its vocal abilities - and how citizen science helps uncover it.
'I accidentally came across videos of budgerigars mimicking R2-D2,' says evolutionary biologist Nick Dam. 'And not just one; a whole series! That's when we decided to find out which species could best imitate those complex sounds.'
The researchers soon traced many of the recordings back to a video titled R2-D2 sounds for your bird - likely the source of all those Star Wars-loving parrots. 'People wrote in the comments that they'd played the video for their birds for hours,' Dam explains. 'And it turned out to be true: many birds even followed the exact order of the sounds from that video.'
Dam converted the videos into audio files and compared them to the original R2-D2 sounds. 'That allowed us to measure precisely how well the birds copied the sounds - both between species and between individual birds.'
'Funny enough, it wasn't the large, talkative parrots that did best, but the smaller ones like budgerigars and cockatiels'
Two tones at once
In total, the researchers analysed over a hundred videos from nine parrot species and European starlings. The starlings turned out to be the champions of reproducing the complex multiphonic sounds, as shown in their scientific publication.
'They owe that to the unique structure of their vocal organ, the syrinx, which has two sound sources,' explains Michelle Spierings, head of the Animal Music Cognition Lab at the Leiden Institute of Biology. This allows them to produce two tones simultaneously - perfect for R2-D2-like noises.
Parrots, like humans, can produce only one tone at a time. Even so, they performed surprisingly well with R2-D2's simpler, single-pitched beeps. 'Funny enough, it wasn't the large, talkative parrots that did best, but the smaller ones like budgerigars and cockatiels,' says Spierings. 'They're often seen as less impressive singers, but in this task they scored higher - probably because they used a different strategy.'
Can birds imitate Artoo-Detoo? Yes, and some are surprisingly good at it
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While the study has a playful side, it also provides serious insights. 'By using something as quirky and complex as R2-D2 sounds, we can clearly measure the physical limits of bird vocalisations,' says Dam. 'It's the first time so many species have imitated exactly the same sounds, which finally lets us make real comparisons.'
Citizens contributing to science
Much of the data came from pet owners and bird enthusiasts participating in the Bird Singalong Project, a collaboration between Spierings, Dam and Henkjan Honing (University of Amsterdam). 'We've gathered a huge amount of data thanks to people sharing videos of their birds,' says Spierings. 'Their contributions give us a far richer picture of bird sounds than ever before - a great example of how science doesn't always have to happen in a lab.'
Puppets for Parrots
How can we improve the well-being of parrots? To explore that question, the researchers came up with Puppets for Parrots: interactive puppets that play sounds parrots can respond to. 'Owners can upload what their bird hears and see which sounds it prefers,' Spierings explains. 'That way, we give parrots a bit of control over their own environment.'
With additional funding, the researchers hope to bring these puppets to life.
