Risks to Unique Dialects of Birdsong: The Case of Chaffinch (Fringilla coelebs) Song Dialects in Southern and Eastern Ukraine During the Russia–Ukraine War
Eugenia Yablonovska-Grishchenko, Vitaly GrishchenkoIntroduction:
The war poses a significant threat to avian song dialects and other regional vocal complexes due to habitat destruction. The study aims to analyse the risks of destruction of the territorial complexes of the Chaffinch (Fringilla coelebs) song in the Steppe zone of Ukraine during the Russia-Ukraine War.
Methods:
We analysed the current state of forests in 41 plots previously used to describe dialects using satellite images of plots from summer and autumn 2025. We used three categories to assess their condition: normal, damaged, and destroyed.
Results:
Of the plots, 9.8% were destroyed after the most intense combat activity, 19.5% of the plots located near the battlefields were damaged, and 70.7% were in normal condition. The plots in the Donetsk Ridge with deciduous forests were not destroyed and were less affected by fires. The artificial coniferous forests in the Lower Dnipro floodplain were completely destroyed or severely damaged by fires in some plots during the battles.
Discussion:
The frontline traverses the territories of these vocal complexes. But the risks for the Donetsk Ridge sub-dialect of the Left-bank of the Dnipro River dialect are lower due to the greater resistance of deciduous forests to fire. The risk of extinction is much higher for the Lower floodplain of the Dnipro River because artificial coniferous forests are much more vulnerable to fire.
Conclusion:
Territorial song complexes of the chaffinch in Ukraine provide a clear example of nonhereditary cultural flows in the biosphere, which are severely threatened by active hostilities.