Originally published at: Duck learned to say "You bloody fool," providing scientists new insight into the evolution of vocal language | Boing Boing
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Kewl. And also this…
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Maybe the duck just thought someone was a real idiot?
Alternate headline: “Duck has finally had enough of Gerald’s shit.”
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… was it trained to curse? 'cause that would be some fowl language, for certain.
:: gets coat, heads for the door ::
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Lyre birds are amazing.
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I think the fun part about birds is they don’t have a neocortex but they do have something similar. It’s interesting how evolution will inevitably create communicators/babblers in various forms. There’s even fish that babble/communicate as well across various species.
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The actual recording, as it wasn’t in the BB article:
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This seems like that video where you hear based on what caption is provided…
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That’s nothing; I’m training all the birds in our flock to squawk the word ‘pareidolia’ at random intervals. In fact, it sounds like some of them are already getting on board with it.
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Agreed; it really says more about the human brain’s capacity for language and pattern-finding than it says anything about ducks.
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to me it sounds more human than most ducks, but yeah: it didn’t sound much like words
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The same level of intelligibility as “backward masked” speech in a recording. I’m not impressed. Do better, duck.
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Thanks, I needed that laugh!
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I have long suspected that many animals can mimic human speech. The big problem is how to motivate them to do so.
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“Get your wings off me, you goddamn dirty waterfowl!” – Planet of the Ducks
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