Nuthatches Understand Chickadee Calls

A Discovery News article today has the story of nuthatches that have apparently learned to interpret the calls of another bird, the chickadee.

It’s not unusual for one animal to react to the alarm call of another, but nuthatches seem to go beyond that — interpreting the type of alarm and what sort of predator poses a threat. When a chickadee sees a predator, it issues warning call — a soft “seet” for a flying hawk, owl or falcon, or a loud “chick-a-dee-dee-dee” for a perched predator.

There is some question about the methodology of the study that reached these conclusions, but whatever the case it looks to warrant further investigation.

One orinthologist commenting on the story mentioned a sneaky tactic by one variety of chickadee:

…black-capped chickadees have been known to produce false alarm calls, causing other birds to fly away, leaving the cheating chickadees to enjoy a food source by itself.

Smart birds. :)