Like Music to our Ears: The Complexity of Bird Vocalizations as a Key Factor of Attractiveness

Abstract

ABSTRACT It is known that bird vocalizations and music share acoustic similarities. Unsurprisingly, bird sounds inspired a number of music composers. In music, complexity plays an important role in auditory attractiveness. Would sound complexity also be important to explain the attractiveness of bird vocalizations to humans? In our study, we experimentally assessed the preference for vocalizations according to their level of complexity, indicated by objective measurements. Further, given that men and women enjoy music similarly, we verified whether the taste for the sound of birds differs between the sexes. The study was conducted on 114 adults living in a rural district in the northeast of Brazil. The results showed a significant and linear preference for sounds, with the most complex ones being preferred. Moreover, both men and women were attracted to the songs of these animals. For the first time, the importance of complexity in humans’ appreciation for bird vocalizations has been objectively demonstrated. Our results stress the relationship between bird vocalizations and music for people. In addition to its theoretical nature, this study might be useful to predict, based on the sound complexity, which birds would be subject to a higher risk of capture, information that would help in reducing the loss of biodiversity. Moreover, giving the apparently universal aspect of bird song attraction to humans, it would be advisable in terms of conservation efforts to elect singing birds as flagship species. We hope that our research will serve as a motivation for further efforts in this area, as it clearly brings important insights into ethnozoology and other interdisciplinary fields.