This is bird note.

Parrots are among the smartest of birds, but are they clever enough to know each other by name?

Ornithologist Carl Berg has studied vocal learning in green-rumped parrotlets

in Venezuela for years and his research published in 2011 suggests the answer might be yes.

The chicks of green-rumped parrotlets appear to learn specific building blocks of sound from their parents,

and then help pass these down to younger siblings.

Each chick customizes the sounds it's learned, so its call is slightly

different from that of its sibling. That means each parrot in the family flock has

its own distinct vocal signature and when others in the family flock has its own distinct vocal signature and when others in the flock hear it they

know precisely who's calling. To make sure that chicks were really learning from parents and

siblings rather than just being born with these

calls, Berg switched eggs among different nests as they were laid, ensuring that parents

raised offspring other than their own. His result showed that chicks learn sound

elements directly from the foster parents. So while you couldn't say that parrots

name their chicks, vocal signatures truly are learned in the nest.

And green-rumped parrotlet chicks create their own unique name tags.

For Bird Note, I'm Michael Stein. You're going to be.