<img class="styles__noscript__2rw2y" src="https://dsx.weather.com//util/image/w/thrush-adele.jpg?v=at&w=485&h=273&api=7db9fe61-7414-47b5-9871-e17d87b8b6a0" srcset="https://dsx.weather.com//util/image/w/thrush-adele.jpg?v=at&w=485&h=273&api=7db9fe61-7414-47b5-9871-e17d87b8b6a0 400w, https://dsx.weather.com//util/image/w/thrush-adele.jpg?v=ap&w=980&h=551&api=7db9fe61-7414-47b5-9871-e17d87b8b6a0 800w" > A new bird species, the Himalayan forest thrush or Zoothera salimalii, was discovered after researchers noticed its Adele-like song set it apart from what was thought to be a single species. (Per Alstrom) (Per Alstrom)

A new species of bird, the Himalayan forest thrush, was discovered by an international team of researchers after they noticed its Adele-like, melodious song set it apart from what was originally thought to be a single species.

According to a new study published in the journal Avian Research , the scientists carefully listened to the vocalizations of the bird, which is based in northeastern India and China, and found its mellifluous song was strikingly different from the raspier Alpine thrush. In addition, they analyzed their vocal differences using sonogram technology and found the Himalayan forest thrush had a "mix of rich, drawn-out clear notes and shorter, thinner ones, with hardly any harsh scratchy notes." Supplemental DNA work definitively concluded the two birds were different from each other.

“To an ornithologist, the Himalayan forest thrush sounds like Adele, while the alpine thrush sounds more like Rod Stewart,” study co-author Shashank Dalvi observed in a press release about the discovery .

While the Himalayan forest thrush is frequently spotted in the wild, its similar appearance to the Alpine thrush kept it hidden from discovery as its own unique species.

Bird song expert David Lukas, who did not participate in the study, explains that recognizing differences in bird songs is a "highly refined skill" among ornithologists.

"Once you develop an 'ear' for bird song it’s fairly easy for an expert to hear extremely subtle differences in songs, even to the point where you can pick up on the fact that birds of the same species sing slightly different songs in different geographic regions," Lukas told weather.com. "So a researcher should theoretically be able to quickly detect an unexpected song, though it may take a while for the brain to consciously recognize that that is an important observation...Tricks include things like turning bird songs into mental schematic diagrams that can be visualized, or remembering songs by comparing them to familiar sounds (“the bird that sounds like a bulldozer with a squeaky wheel”) and hearing Adele in a bird song fits into this latter category."

Pamela C. Rasmussen, co-author of the study and integrative biologist at Michigan State University, told weather.com that at times, the songs of specific birds can sometimes have a remarkable similarity to popular singers, like the British pop star.

"Usually different bird species have songs and calls that are noticeably different to us," Pamela C. Rasmussen, co-author of the study and integrative biologist at Michigan State University, told weather.com. "However, there are a few exceptions, and even some distantly related species may occasionally sound similar, just by convergence. Of course, any resemblance of these two bird species to different human singers is just a way to help the general public appreciate some of the differences in overall quality, meaning in their relative purity and musicality."

Listen to the Himalayan forest thrush's Adele-like song and the harsher call of the Alpine thrush below:

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