The Himalayan monal is hard to miss. With its metallic green, blue and copper plumage, the colourful pheasant is the state bird of Uttarakhand and is found across the Himalayan mountains.

But researchers have found that the bird may be changing something less visible: the way it calls.

A study by researchers from Hemvati Nandan Bahuguna Garhwal University (HBGU), published in Behavioural Processes, found that Himalayan monals living in noisier areas use higher-frequency calls than those in quieter habitats. The finding suggests that increasing human activity may be influencing how the birds communicate.

The researchers compared monal calls recorded in two valleys within Uttarakhand’s Kedarnath Musk Deer Sanctuary: Madmaheshwar, which has relatively little human activity, and Chopta, a busy tourist area with roads, traffic and pilgrims.

DISCLAIMER: This article is based on information from the public domain and/or the experts we spoke to.

Using microphones and passive acoustic monitoring devices, they…