西班牙研究人员通过对金丝雀的研究发现，为了对抗人类活动产生的噪音尤其是交通噪音，城市中的鸟儿会用更多的时间来鸣叫。
西班牙研究人员在美国《行为生物学》双月刊上发表报告说，他们研究了西班牙托莱多郊区金丝雀的行为。金丝雀是当地常见的一种鸟，研究人员可以准确记录它们鸣叫的时间。
研究显示，当噪音水平达到70分贝时，金丝雀60％的时间都在鸣叫，此外研究人员还发现。金丝雀的叫声在市区比在郊区更尖利，而且地方越吵，它们鸣叫的时间越长。金丝雀的鸣叫时间甚至跟日期也有关系，周末噪音少，鸟儿叫的时间也少。
西班牙国家研究委员会研究人员马里奥·迪亚斯解释说，总体来说，生物对于人类活动造成的全球性变化的反应是相当消极的，“它们通常不能适应”，但金丝雀的行为说明，动物对这些变化的反应并非一成不变。（生物谷Bioon.com）
生物谷推荐原文出处：
Behavioral Ecology (2011) 22 (2): 332-336. doi: 10.1093/beheco/arq210
Serins respond to anthropogenic noise by increasing vocal activity
Mario Díaza, Antonio Parrab and Clemente Gallardob
Increasing levels of anthropogenic noise interferes with the acoustic communication of birds. Adaptive shifts in song characteristics (frequency and amplitude) and in the spatial and temporal patterns of singing behavior in the face of noise pollution have been documented. We provide evidence for another response, increased time spent singing, in a successful suburban bird, the serin Serinus serinus. Serins increased the proportion of time spent singing at posts in relation to changes in noise levels both in space and in time up to a threshold at approximately 70 dBA, whereas time spent at singing posts was not related to noise levels. This response could be related to the characteristics of the serin's song (high pitch and presumably low metabolic and neuromuscular costs) that would reduce the relative effectiveness of song shifts. However, vocal activity decreased sharply above the 70 dBA threshold, suggesting that this strategy is costly. Because singing time may trade off with vigilance time, our data suggest that bird populations in noisy city environments may face an increased challenge for survival compared with quiet areas, even for species whose song characteristics reduce the interference of urban noise with acoustic communication.
