An intensive one-year field study will be carried out to examine social factors in bird song learning. Much of the rationale for this work comes from recent laboratory studies which have indicated, surprisingly, that a young bird's song learning is influenced at least as much by singing interactions he eavesdrops on as it is by direct interactions he has with adult song tutors. Because laboratory experiments always have limited ecological validity, these inferences need to be confirmed directly, in the field. Young song sparrows will be radio-tracked through their first year so that their movement patterns and the extent and timing of their direct and eavesdropped interactions with potential song tutors can be correlated with the degree to which the young birds copy the songs of these birds. Results from the field and laboratory lines of research can then be integrated to elucidate the social factors that shape the development of this model vocal learning system.
Song learning in songbirds has been extensively analyzed in the laboratory and has become a major model system for studying the ecology, neurobiology and genetics of learning. In addition, there are many important parallels between bird song learning and human language learning. Yet despite its broader significance, it is only recently that the significance of social factors in bird song learning has been recognized. Thus the proposed research could close a significant gap in our understanding of this widely studied model system and broaden the potential of applications to human behavior. Insights gained from research on this animal model system can ultimately be used to address autism and other developmental disorders pertaining to social learning and communication.
