COMMUNICATION BETWEEN BIRDS

obmar · COMMUNICATION BETWEEN BIRDS

COMMUNICATION BETWEEN BIRDS
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16- And Solomon was David’s heir. He said: “O my people! We have been taught the speech of birds...”
27-The Ant, 16

In the above verse, it is said that the Prophet Solomon was taught the speech of birds in addition to the endowments that God’s grace had adorned him with. The Quran refers to the communication between birds and to the fact that the twittering and singing of birds has particular meanings. Birds, like human beings, do communicate. This undeniable communication is certainly not as developed as it is in man.

Research conducted by zoologists has established that sounds emitted by animals are meaningful and not haphazard. Birds, ants, dolphins, etc., have systems of communication.

MEANINGS IN SOUNDS EMITTED BY BIRDS
As the Quran speaks of the language of birds, let us take a look at research conducted on birds. Brazilian and American ornithologists have studied the hummingbird (one of the tiniest birds in the world) and published their findings in the British journal Nature. The author of the article, Maria Luisa Da Silva, says that the vocabulary of the hummingbird is not innate but develops afterward. In other words, the hummingbird learns to speak as human beings do.

Studies on crows have demonstrated that they emit a variety of sounds, namely, to call the colony of crows to come together, to express alarm, and to communicate a state of distress. Ornithologists, who have recorded these sounds using a sonograph, are still engaged in deciphering the meanings behind them. Bernd Heinrich, among these scientists who speak of the difficulty in decoding the sonograms, associates this research work with the work of the inhabitants of other planets visiting our earth and trying to decipher eating, playing, making love and activities like catching fish using a sonograph. What we are trying to do is to imagine ourselves in their place. Bernd Heinrich speaks of the difficulty encountered in deciphering the language of animals in general, as different species have different ways of communication, each calling for a different approach.

There is a body language, expressed by the changes in your body position and movements, that show what you are feeling or thinking. Nodding means “yes,” hailing is a sign of calling to someone in order to greet him or try to attract his attention. Although the sounds emitted by birds are a means of communication, they also have, in general, a body language. Their body language is easier to decipher. For instance, a bird that emits a sound by touching its beak with his tongue means “I am a friend, I have no intention to harm you.” Theresa Jordan gives a whole list of signs, demonstrating thereby that even the body language necessitates a glossary.

The physiology of birds is as interesting as their language, the long distances they cover without swerving from their destination are something to marvel at. Ornithologists studying birds will see God’s perfect artistry revealed in these creatures too.

38- All the creatures on earth, and all the birds that fly with wings are communities like you. We did not leave anything out of this Book. Then they will all be gathered before their Lord.
6-The Cattle, 38

The Inquisitor

"Notice how the flowers grow. They do not toil or spin. But I tell you, not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of them. If God so clothes the grass in the field that grows today and is thrown into the oven tomorrow, will he not much more provide for you, O you of little faith?" (Luke 12:27-2 Cool

"Are not two sparrows sold for a small coin? Yet not one of them falls to the ground without your Father's knowledge." (Matthew 10:28-29)

"And God said, "Let the waters bring forth swarms of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the firmament of the heavens." So God created the great sea monsters and every living creature that moves, with which the waters swarm, according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. And God blessed them, saying, "Be fruitful and multiply and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth." And there was evening and there was morning, a fifth day." (Genesis 1:20-23 RSV)

Blue1moon

obmar

Birds talking
And we are not listening....

Very Happy

Blue1moon

I often listen, just wish I understood better....
Seems like our pets understand us better than we understand their communications - and they call the animals "stupid" !

obmar

The bees are dissapearing and we again are not listening.

Blue1moon

Yes, bees disappearing... frogs too!
So many people seem sooo busy that they can't hear much of anything at all. They are "closed".

obmar

obmar

World News Desk – March 9, 2007
Posted/Updated: 2007-03-09 11:31:59
SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
If the Bees Disappear…
Beekeepers in 24 states across America are encountering a strange phenomenon: bees—which seemed to be healthy days earlier—are abandoning their hives. Millions of these insects have been reported lost, with no trace of where the colonies may have gone, and no apparent cause for their disappearance. In a few other cases, whole colonies have been found dead in their hives.

Scientists and beekeepers alike are unsure as to the source of this problem, which is tentatively being called Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD). Suspected causes are pesticides, mites, viruses, cold weather, fungus, the use of antibiotics and low-quality food for the bees.

There are signs that the immune systems of infected bees are collapsing, again for no known reason, causing some to call it “bee HIV/AIDS.” With weakened immune systems, the bees are unable to fight off diseases. In fact, found in the stomachs of infected bees are traces of nearly every disease that has affected bees over the last 100 years.

Honeybees, contrary to popular belief, do not simply make honey. They are also a crucial element needed to pollinate fruit and vegetable crops—amounting to a $14 billion share in the United States’ fresh produce. Farmers rent hives from beekeepers to ensure widespread pollination and, in turn, a good harvest. The success of crops such as almonds, apples, cranberries, and many other fruits and vegetables are all linked to bee pollination.

The vice president of the American Beekeeping Federation said, “Every third bite we consume in our diet is dependent on a honeybee to pollinate that food” (International Herald Tribune).

Colony Collapse Disorder has been seen before, but under different names. In 1915 it was called Disappearing Disease, and in the 1960s it was Dwindling Disease. Both outbreaks were localized, never widespread, and the causes were never determined.

While beekeepers consider a 20% loss to be normal for a season, losses of 30-60% have been reported this season, and the problem continues to spread. CCD is also being reported throughout parts of Canada and Europe.

If the current CCD outbreak subsides as it has in the past, certain food prices throughout America and Europe will rise for a short time, but drastic damage will be unlikely. However, if the problem continues to accelerate, and the causes of these mysterious disappearances are not determined soon, food supplies on both sides of the Atlantic will be dealt a heavy blow.

obmar · But since this is still a bird thread.

The Five Voices of the Birds:

1) Song
2) Companion Calls
3) Male To Male Aggression
4) Begging Calls
5) Voice of Alarm

obmar

http://www.10x50.com/Sound_files/Little%20Owl/Little_Owl_W_6.wav

An Owl

obmar

http://www.10x50.com/Sound_files/l_white_w.wav

Lesser whitethroats

Blue1moon

Lovely picture of the flower and bee..

Yes, the bee die-off is very worrisome - it will affect food supplies the world over, I fear. (I will hand pollinate the veges in my garden if need bee (pun intended) - I did notice a few (very few) bees/yellow jackets pollinating the crab apples in the last week or so.

Seems like birds should have more than five words or calls...
Perhaps we just do not know them yet.
But I love it when they sing.
The woodpecker makes quite a racket - we had put up some metal decorative masks on some of the trees in the woods - the woodpecker found them pretty quick as the noisiest things around - haha...

obmar

http://library.thinkquest.org/11922/birds/bird.wav

Soothing, isnt it....

I would not be surprise if it is a continuous glorification of Our Lord.

obmar

Common loon Gavia immer

http://www.mbr-pwrc.usgs.gov/id/htmwav/h0070so.mp3

obmar

Blue1moon

Loons are pretty cool!

obmar

The more we know about them the cooler they are....

COMMON LOON, Gavia immer

For inquiries contact Patricia Vittum

The silence of the predawn hours in the northern reaches of the Connecticut River Valley is occasionally shattered by an unearthly tremolo cry, difficult to describe and impossible to forget - almost like a demented person laughing. The caller is a common loon, one of the oldest ("most primitive") birds known.

There are five species of loon, but the one most common in New England is the common loon. This species spends the summers in the northern parts of New England, normally nesting along the shores of the many lakes and ponds of New Hampshire, Maine, and Vermont, as well as the eastern Canadian provinces. However, because there is competition for food, some loons can be seen diving for fish in the River. The birds then migrate to coastal waters (from the Chesapeake Bay to the Gulf of Mexico) for the winter.

Loons are large birds, with wing spans approaching four feet, but they are also relatively heavy birds so the large wings are essential. They are extremely efficient diving birds, and their legs are set well back on the body, which aids in propulsion in the water but makes navigating on land nearly impossible. A loon is vulnerable on land because it can only thrust its chest forward a few inches and drag the legs back underneath the body. As a result, loons leave the water only to nest (very close to the shoreline) and to defecate.

Loons feed on fish and other aquatic life. They overwinter in southern waters, primarily because they must have an expanse of open water (sometimes as much as 400 yards) to get airborne. They return to northern waters in the spring, where the longer days provide ample time for the biologically expensive activities of laying eggs and raising chicks. Loons typically produce two eggs each year. Incubation takes about 28 days, and the parents share the nest duty equally. The average loon pair in New Hampshire fledges one chick each year - heat stress during incubation and predation by large bass and raptorial birds shortly after a chick hatches take their toll.

When the chicks hatch (usually around July 4th in New England), they immediately make their way to the nearby water and leave it only to defecate. The adults now take on the substantial challenge of feeding the babies and themselves - diving for 30 to 50 seconds at a time, catching fish, and feeding them directly to the chicks. During the first week, a chick may crawl on to the back of a parent which is paddling along on the surface. Chicks stay very close to the parents for the first three weeks, and respond immediately to calls warning of birds (or airplanes) flying overhead by scrambling under an adult's wing. The chicks grow very rapidly and are nearly the size of the adults within four to six weeks. They also begin to demonstrate independence, seeking their own food, diving, and exercising their wing muscles. They retain their dull grey back plumage during that time, although the belly turns white.

As winter approaches, the adults congregate with other adults in the region and migrate to more southern waters. Although loons mate for life and normally return to the same territory they occupied the previous year, a pair does not necessarily migrate together, and may not be reunited until the following year. Similarly, juveniles congregate with others in autumn and travel together - leaving before the northern ponds and lakes are covered with ice.

General Reference:

Lan, A. and W. Lynch. Loons. Firefly Books Inc., P.O. Box 1338, Ellicot Station, Buffalo, NY 14205.

Blue1moon

We get alot of birds in our small ponds from time to time - some have trouble with not quite enough room for take-off - as the trees surrounding them are pretty high. I don't think we have had loons yet, though.

COMMUNICATION BETWEEN BIRDS

But since this is still a bird thread.