The chirp acts like a password that, when hatched, the young fairy-wren has learned, and repeats. It emits the same chip when begging for food, and the mother then knows it is one of hers.

Superb fairy-wrens were monitored in Cleland Wildlife Park for the study. (iNaturalist: Antoni Camozzato, Superb fairy-wren, CC BY-NC 4.0) Breaking down bird behaviour ...

That's according to a study published today in Royal Society Open Science, which claims the complexity of a superb fairy-wren's (Malurus cyaneus) "chatter" song reveals its personality.

Fairy-Wrens are real, and the Australian Museum explains, "The Superb Fairy-Wren is found in open eucalyptwoodland forests of South-Eastern Australia. It inhabits dense understorey, and is usually ...