Popular Press

Our research on animal communication and cognition has generated a lot of media interest around the world. Below are a few links to selected media coverage.


In addition to newpaper, magazine, radio, and TV coverage, our research has been featured in elementary numeracy and university statistics curricula and even helped inspire the composition of a symphony: check out Craig Thomas Naylor's excellent marriage of science and art in his "Chickadee Symphony" (score excerpt | midi sound clip)


New York Times cartoon

by Chris Gash

Information Encoding in Songbird Alarm Signals

Sophisticated Bird Signals  Washington Post

You Call It Music. They Call It an Air Raid New York Times

Chickadee Calls Carry Specifics on Danger NPR's All Things Considered

Warning Calls: Birds Do It The Why Files

Duetting Songbird Conversations

How Baby Birds Learn to Duet Scientific American

Duetting wren make beautiful music together Wired

Wrens so happy that they duet, but how do they do it? Scientific American

Cross-Species Eavesdropping

Decoding a Neighbor’s Call New York Times

Nuthatches Alert to Chickadee Warning Calls NPR's Morning Edition

Eavesdropping nuthatches act on chickadee warnings New Scientist

Danger in the Air Science Magazine

Eavesdropping songbirds get predator intel from overheard calls Discover Magazine

Nuthatches Heed Chickadees’ Warning Calls—but They’re Wary of False Alarms Smithsonian

These birds 'retweet' alarm calls— but are careful about spreading rumors National Geographic

Effects of Traffic Noise on Animals

Traffic noise impairs songbirds' abilities BBC: Inside Science

Human noise affects animal behaviour, studies show The Guardian

Putting a number on biodiversity BBC News

Wild bird impaired by traffic noise  BBC The Newsroom

Traffic noise endangers wild birds by making it harder for them to hear alarm calls The Telegraph

Song Learning

Tracking the Vocabulary of Songbirds  Seattle Times

Not Your Father's  Science News

SongSparrows Learn Song by "Twitter"  BBC News

Song Sparrows Learn to Sing  Birdnote

The Design of Science: 10 Great Research Graphics Wired

What's in your backyard? How to identify 11 Oregon birds by sound and sight The Oregonian

Other Projects

Cool Jobs: The science of secrets  Science News

The Art of Eavesdropping: Nature's Silent Sniffers, Watchers and Listeners  Scientific American

Sparrows identify 'troublemakers' from innocent birds  BBC Earth News