Scientists at a public university recently conducted a study of what happens when birds drink and sing.
Neuroscientist Christopher Olson and his team at Oregon Health and Science University fed zebra finches alcohol in order to figure out whether the sauce affects birds’ song in the same way that it does humans’ speech, as reports NPR.
“We just showed up in the morning and mixed a little bit of juice with 6 percent alcohol, and put it in their water bottles and put it in the cages,” recounted Olson. “At first we were thinking that they wouldn’t drink on their own because, you know, a lot of animals just won’t touch the stuff. But they seem to tolerate it pretty well and be somewhat willing to consume it.”
Why zebra finches in particular? The birds are actually used often when studying the way in which humans learn to use language.
After the researchers gave the birds enough drink to put their blood-alcohol level in the range of .05 to .08 percent, the zebra finches sang their songs more quietly and with a slight slur.
Though the amount of alcohol they consumed might not sound like a lot — .08 percent is the legal limit to drive in the U.S. — it was enough to get them singing tipsy, since birds process alcohol differently than do humans.
Olson described the birds as “a bit less organized in their sound production” and called the drunk songs a “little sloppier” than their sober counterparts.
It appears the results weren’t enough to satisfy the neuroscientists, though. Olson said he wants to continue the research and test how alcohol affects the way in which zebra finches learn new songs.
