Friday 21 September 2012

The gift of the gab


First we babble and then we talk...Did you know that human speech shares many similarities with songbird?

I came across this research article reviewing amazing findings about language development and birdsong learning. Overall, the similarities between human speech and birdsong can be found in: (1) the brain connections and design responsible for speech and song learning; (2) the structure of language and birdsong, including perception of vocalisation; and (3) the involvement of a gene called FOXP2 in vocal learning.

Both humans and birds start by imitating the communication sounds they hear, this is the vocalisation phase that is known as “babble” in the human and “subsong” in the bird. The neural mechanisms involved in speech and birdsong development are still under investigation, including the forebrain and motor regions. So far, we know that birdsong consists of different song sequences depending on the social context. These sequences could be related to the human “syntax”, which is the order of words and phrases to form sentences. Comparative genetic studies are underway to elucidate the role of different genes in speech and birdsong development. One example is the FOXP2 gene: mutations in this gene have been associated with speech disorders.

Studies like these will help us to better understand the evolution of communication not only in humans but also in other animals.