Do Birds Like Music?

By Richard Worden

do birds like music
Birds are some of nature's most talented singers. They can produce the sweetest of tunes and create music even we find hard to replicate. But does a singing ability translate to actually liking music?

Birds, usually parrots, can perceive and like music. They have been observed to bob their heads to the beat, akin to dancing. A study also revealed that parrots might prefer specific music genres over others.

Studying whether animals can perceive music is challenging, much less discerning if they actually like it. However, there have been discoveries on birds and their relationship with music, as you'll learn in this article.

What Kind of Music Do Birds Like?

Despite the sheer variety of options on offer, many people naturally lean towards a specific genre or sound.

For instance, some are fond of mainstream and pop songs, while others lean toward indie rock. But do birds also have the ability to choose favorites and "dislike" other music?

Birds have been observed to like a wide range of music with no specific preferences among species. Some birds will respond positively to genres like classical, while others respond better to pop. However, there is a common dislike of Electronic Dance Music (EDM).

A particular study has shown this preference among parrots. This involved three parrots and was overseen by Dr. Franck Péron from the University of Lincoln. It showed that all three birds liked the Twisted Nerve by Bernard Herrmann and that electronic dance music (EDM) caused them distress. 

Despite those observations, it does not conclude that all parrots and birds love pop and classics. Nor does it prove that they all hate EDM, and you can't bring them to the disco floor. 

However, it does demonstrate that birds, specifically parrots, can discern between musical genres and make song preferences.

Such an exciting discovery could help us understand birds' ability to perceive and process music. 

Can Birds Understand Music?

The study above showing birds' musical preferences implies that they can understand music. Many homemade videos of birds screeching back their owners' morning alarms might also want to support that.

Some studies have shown that birds can understand music because they can detect patterns and respond to them. They may bop their heads or even dance in synchrony. It is also believed that their brains react to music similarly to humans. But there's still a lot to discover about this.

Some Birds Can Perceive Rhythm

A 2016 study from Cate et al. explored the ability of birds to perceive patterns in music. As humans, we demonstrate our perception of music by bopping our heads, tapping with our hands and fingers, and more. 

The study was built on that. They tried to see if birds could detect music patterns and change their response based on the beat or rhythm. If they made the music faster, would our feathery friend also bop its head faster? 

The authors stated that, besides parrots, it's difficult to conclude if other birds can perceive rhythm. 

For one, it's possible that some birds do hear the beat but just don't respond to it. There's also a chance they can detect the rhythm, but once it changes, they can't alter their response. 

It's Unsure How Birds Understand the Music

Another thing is scientists are also unsure if they're responding to the music because they like it or don't. 

According to Dr. Timothy J. DeVoogd, birds listen to music, and the areas in their brain that respond to it may be similar to the human brain regions that do the same. But that does not mean good music to us is also good to them.

Indeed, good music may sound like threatening music to them. That makes sense because many birds sing to defend their territory or attract a mate. 

Overall, birds can hear and process music. However, it's difficult to prove that they understand music the way we do or can discern a musical pattern after it's been modified.

Do Birds Dance to Music?

Many of us have been down the YouTube rabbit hole of talented animal videos. At some point, you'd have seen at least one bird dancing to the beat. So is that real or a hoax? 

Scientists have confirmed that birds can dance to music. They can detect beat or rhythm and move accordingly. However, such ability is mainly observed only in birds that can mimic voices.

This conclusion was made by scientists at Harvard University after studying Alex, a parrot, and Snowball, a cockatoo. Another study from The Neurosciences Institute, which followed Snowball as well, also made the same discovery. Both also looked into other YouTube videos of dancing birds, primarily parrots.

The discovery was interesting as it was the first to conclude that other creatures besides humans can follow the groove. Such behavior was observed mostly in birds that can mimic voices, i.e., talking birds like parrots. 

However, this does not mean all talking birds can perceive music and dance to it. They even found that some parrots cannot dance. However, I don't think we should be surprised since not all humans are particularly good at keeping up with the beat either.

Should I Leave Music On for My Bird?

Sometimes, you have to leave your birds alone. So is it alright to play them some music during that period?

Many bird owners advise leaving music on for birds. It helps stimulate and entertain them, especially when no other birds are around. However, it should not be done for long periods. You should also select appropriate and enjoyable music. 

The studies above and shared experiences on the Internet by bird owners show that these feathery critters enjoy music to some degree. 

Thus, you can probably leave them with a listening track or two. This is especially effective for birds that mimic voices, as they can perceive rhythm.

However, select the songs or videos carefully. You don't want your parrot picking up curse words and screaming them at random times. Also, keep the volume low.

Do Birds Like Music?...Final Thoughts

The complete science behind how birds perceive music is yet to be unraveled. However, what discoveries have been made – like their ability to hear and move to the beat – are fascinating. However, this ability seems limited to species that can mimic voices.

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Hi! I'm Richard Worden, the author and founder of We Know Birds.

Over 20 years ago I developed a keen interest in birds and birdwatching, and it has been my passion ever since. I am committed to spreading useful knowledge about birds to others so we might all enjoy them to the fullest.

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