A red-tailed hawk shrieks in the background. Upon hearing the shriek, the squirrels shift into danger mode, as they alternately freeze in place to search the skies, or flee.
New research suggests that these rodents are not solely aware of avian alarms. According to a PLoS One journal report by three scientists from Ohio’s Berlin College, squirrels also rely on the sounds of everyday bird calls in order to sense whether threats have passed. In other words, they eavesdrop on the environment.
As Katherine J. Wu of NOVA Next reports, the researchers found that squirrels wary of predators resume their normal activities more quickly after hearing nearby birds’ casual chatter. Distinct from “all clear” alerts, these exchanges essentially act as background noise, signaling a return to normalcy for animals in the vicinity.
“There’s a lot of information in alarm calls,” explains Oberlin behavioral ecologist Keith Tarvin. “It dawned on us that cues of safety might be equally informative.”
More details of this study over at Smithsonian.com.
What clever little creatures!
(Image Credit: tpa/ Pixabay)