Songbirds without a song What’s a songbird without its song? Sadly, we are finding out. Australian regent honeyeaters are failing to learn their species’ tune due to dwindling populations, according to a study published in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B, and this is thwarting the male birds’ ability to attract females. Like humans and other species, young songbirds need to learn their culture’s way of communicating. But researchers from the Australian National University (ANU) discovered that the critically endangered birds ( Anthochaera phrygia) are losing opportunities to learn from their own kind, with spiralling ramifications for their survival.