Drumming in Woodpeckers Is Neurologically Similar to Singing in Songbirds; Woodpecker Forebrain Contains Specialized Pecking-Related Regions That Resemble Those Associated with Song and Language Systems

Researchers led by Matthew Fuxjager, PhD, at Brown University, U.S., and Eric Schuppe, PhD, at Wake Forest University, U.S. have found regions in the woodpecker forebrain that show characteristics that, until now, have only been associated with vocal learning in animals and language in humans. Publishing in the open access journal PLOS Biology on September 20,2022, the study shows that instead of being related to vocalization, activity in these brain regions is related to the characteristic tree drumming that gives woodpeckers their name. The open-access article is titled “Forebrain Nuclei Linked to Woodpecker Territorial Drum Displays Mirror Those That Enable Vocal Learning In Songbirds.”