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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Environment
Damien Gayle Environment correspondent

Angry birds: traffic noise makes robins more aggressive, study finds

Robins can adapt their songs to ward away their rivals.
Robins can adapt their songs to drive away their rivals. Photograph: Katherine Anne Rose/The Observer

It isn’t just people who get road rage. Robins in the countryside become more aggressive when they hear the sound of traffic, according to a study.

Beloved for their plump appearance, proud bearing and sweet song, European robins are actually fiercely competitive creatures, whose calls and behaviours are part of a struggle for territorial dominance fought daily with their neighbours.

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