Birds can remember human faces

Mockingbirds can distinguish the faces of many people, especially individuals that they consider to be threats.

A mockingbird in America.Photo: floridaholidayreview.com.

Mimus polyglottos can imitate the song of more than 20 other birds. With each new voice style, they only need 10 minutes to mimic. Mockingbirds distribute in an area from the north of the United States to Brazil. In the United States, mockingbirds mainly live in urban areas. Their average length is 27 cm. They sing all day and night and are ready to risk dying to protect the nest.

Scientists at the University of Florida (USA) discovered that urban mockingbirds can distinguish human faces and are ready to attack individuals they consider dangerous. "People always think that every bird is the same, but mockingbirds don't think that way about us. They always identify those who can threaten their safety , " said Professor Doug Levey, a student. University of Florida study, speaking.

To prove this hypothesis, Levey asked some students to approach the bird's nest in the University of Florida campus, lightly touch their eggs and leave. Despite the violent reaction of the birds, they repeated the behavior for 4 consecutive days. On the third and fourth days, when they saw the students, the birds all left the nest and flew towards them. They cried and even pecked at the students' heads.

However, when another group of students approached the birds on the fifth day, the birds did not react. "They realized these students didn't touch their eggs four days ago. The birds only took 60 seconds to realize that," Levey concluded.

According to many ornithologists, Levey's findings explain why the number of mockingbirds in cities has continued to increase, while their congregations in rural areas have struggled in the fight for survival. .