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This is according to a study conducted by researchers from Anglia Ruskin University and Koç University in Turkey, where they looked at the behaviour of male European robins (Erithacus rubecula) residing in both urban and rural areas.
Researchers looked at aggression levels when an intruder breaches, using a 3D model of a robin. The model robin was accompanied by recordings of robin songs while additional traffic noise was added through a separate speaker.
Researchers recorded the birds’ behaviour during interactions when in contact with the intruder and found that urban robins displayed more physical aggression than rural ones. However, what set off rural robins was the addition of traffic noise, which the urban robins had grown accustomed to.
Scientists are of the belief that physical displays of territoriality rise because traffic noise affects robins’ signalling behaviour using the song.
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Dr Caglar Akcay, senior lecturer of behavioural ecology at Anglia Ruskin University and senior author of the study, explained, “In normally quiet surroundings, we found that additional traffic noise leads to rural robins becoming more physically aggressive, for instance approaching the model bird more closely, and we believe this is because the noise is interfering with their communication.”
Akcay added, “The chronic high levels of noise that exist day and night in urban habitats, such as from traffic or construction equipment, may permanently interfere with the efficient transmission of acoustic signals and this is likely to be the key reason why urban robins are typically more aggressive than rural birds. It should be stressed that physical aggression is a risky behaviour for small birds like robins and is likely to have health consequences.”
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