"Tim Rhodes" <proftim@speakeasy.org> wrote:
> Incorrect. Songbirds are genetically programmed to sing, but
> the songs themselves are not. (Much as we are programmed for
> language, but not _a_ language.) Birdsongs vary within species
> by region and location; a flock's songs change over time and within
> the lifespan a single bird; new songs introduced are copied and
> spread to other flocks; and songbirds of one species raised by
> another species will grow up to sing their foster parents songs.
Really? Why is it, then, that field guides to birds can record bird songs
accuratly? My parents possess a 20 year old record of bird songs which is
every bit as useful now as it was then -- Robins still sound like Robins,
and it don't even matter where you live!
I think you're trying to bullshit me, Tim.
ERiC