scholarly journals The Duet Code of the Female Black-Bellied Wren

The Condor ◽  
2006 ◽  
Vol 108 (2) ◽  
pp. 326-335 ◽  
Author(s):  
David M. Logue
Keyword(s):  
Animal Communication ◽  
Special Kind ◽  
Song Type ◽  
Free Living ◽  
Female Response ◽  
Male Song ◽  
Vocal Responses ◽  
Vocal Signals ◽  
Behavioral Mechanisms ◽  
Song Types

Abstract In many duet-singing songbirds, paired birds combine their song types nonrandomly to form duet songs. Several different behavioral mechanisms could generate nonrandom song type associations in duets. I tested female Black-bellied Wrens (Thryothorus fasciatoventris) for one such mechanism: adherence to a set of rules linking female response songs to male stimulus songs. I call this set of rules a “duet code.” Duets of free-living Black-bellied Wrens were recorded in 2001 and 2002. In 2003 I returned to the same territories and played the male song types from the recorded duets. Females answered male song stimuli as if duetting with the playback speaker. Although the known repertoires of females averaged 8.4 song types, each female sang only a single song type in response to each male song type. Random answering could not account for this pattern, supporting the hypothesis that females abide by duet codes. Females that were still paired with their mates from 2001–2002 answered 100% of their mate's songs with the same song types they had used previously, demonstrating that codes are stable over time. In contrast, females that were new to a territory answered an average of only 18% of their mate's song types with the same song type as the previous female, indicating that duet codes are individually distinctive. Duet participation by female Black-bellied Wrens represents a special kind of animal communication, in which discrete vocal signals consistently elicit discrete vocal responses according to an individually distinctive set of rules.

scholarly journals Early development of vocal interaction rules in a duetting songbird

2018 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 171791 ◽  
Author(s):  
Karla D. Rivera-Cáceres ◽  
Esmeralda Quirós-Guerrero ◽  
Marcelo Araya-Salas ◽  
Christopher N. Templeton ◽  
William A. Searcy
Keyword(s):  
Early Development ◽  
Animal Communication ◽  
Song Type ◽  
Vocal Development ◽  
Temporal Coordination ◽  
Vocal Signals ◽  
Turn Taking ◽  
Song Types ◽  
Over Time ◽  
Vocal Interactions

Exchange of vocal signals is an important aspect of animal communication. Although birdsong is the premier model for understanding vocal development, the development of vocal interaction rules in birds and possible parallels to humans have been little studied. Many tropical songbirds engage in complex vocal interactions in the form of duets between mated pairs. In some species, duets show precise temporal coordination and follow rules (duet codes) governing which song type one bird uses to reply to each of the song types of its mate. We determined whether these duetting rules are acquired during early development in canebrake wrens. Results show that juveniles acquire a duet code by singing with a mated pair of adults and that juveniles gradually increase their fidelity to the code over time. Additionally, we found that juveniles exhibit poorer temporal coordination than adults and improve their coordination as time progresses. Human turn-taking, an analogous rule to temporal coordination, is learned during early development. We report that the ontogeny of vocal interaction rules in songbirds is analogous to that of human conversation rules.

Songs and Sexual Responses of Female White-Crowned Sparrows (Zonotrichia Leucophrys) From a Mixed-Dialect Population

Behaviour ◽  
1996 ◽  
Vol 133 (3-4) ◽  
pp. 173-198 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Ross Lein ◽  
Glen Chilton
Keyword(s):  
Mate Choice ◽  
Song Type ◽  
Genetic Isolation ◽  
Free Living ◽  
Zonotrichia Leucophrys ◽  
Dialectal Variation ◽  
Male Song ◽  
Song Dialect ◽  
Song Types ◽  
Song Playback

AbstractSome researchers have suggested that female songbirds mate with males singing local song types in preference to males singing dialects from more distant populations. Such behaviour might promote genetic isolation among dialect populations. We studied captive female white-crowned sparrows (Zonotrichia leucophrys) from a population in which two song types were equally common, as a model for behaviour at dialect boundaries. Subjects were captured as adults, and the song type of the mate of each was known. Treated with estradiol, females gave sexual displays in response to playback of conspecific male song. As a group, they solicited no more strongly to either local song type, suggesting that males singing either local song type should be able to attract mates. Individuals solicited no more strongly to their mate's song type than to the other local song type. This suggests that strength of response of captive females to song playback may not accurately reflect the behaviour of free-living individuals. Subjects were also treated with testosterone to induce singing. Individuals sang their mates' song type more often than expected by chance. Given that female white-crowned sparrows in this population do not consistently choose mates of one song type, we develop the argument that females learn, for performance, the song type of their first mate. However, the type of song learned for performance appears unlikely to restrict their subsequent mate choice decisions. Our results suggest that female white-crowned sparrows do not base their choice of mates on dialectal variation in male song, and that it is unlikely that mate choice decisions based on song dialect promote the genetic isolation of dialect populations.

Testing the function of song-matching in birds: responses of eastern male song sparrows Melospiza melodia to partial song-matching

Behaviour ◽  
2008 ◽  
Vol 145 (3) ◽  
pp. 347-363 ◽  
Author(s):  
William Searcy ◽  
Rindy Anderson ◽  
Stephen Nowicki
Keyword(s):  
Average Distance ◽  
Aggressive Response ◽  
Melospiza Melodia ◽  
Song Sparrow ◽  
Song Type ◽  
Eastern Population ◽  
Partial Matching ◽  
Male Song ◽  
Song Sparrows ◽  
Song Types

AbstractSong-matching has been hypothesized to be a signal of aggressive intentions whereby matching an opponent signals that the singer is likely to attack. Theory predicts that an aggressive signal should impose a cost that enforces the signal's reliability. A receiver-dependent cost imposed by the matched bird's aggressive retaliation has been proposed for song-matching. We tested for such a cost for partial song-matching in an eastern population of song sparrows where males lack the shared song types necessary for song type matching, but can perform partial song-matching using shared song segments. We tested aggressive response, as measured by average distance to a playback speaker, to partial-matching songs and non-matching songs. We predicted a stronger aggressive response to partial-matching songs, as has been shown for whole song-matching in western song sparrow populations. The birds in our study responded no differently to partial-matching and non-matching songs. Neither the distance to the playback speaker nor singing responses differed between playback treatments. Our results do not support a receiver-dependent cost to partial song-matching, as would be expected if partial-matching is a direct threat. Instead, we suggest that partial song-matching functions as a signal of attention.

scholarly journals The use of network analysis to study complex animal communication systems: a study on nightingale song

2014 ◽  
Vol 281 (1785) ◽  
pp. 20140460 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Weiss ◽  
Henrike Hultsch ◽  
Iris Adam ◽  
Constance Scharff ◽  
Silke Kipper
Keyword(s):  
Network Analysis ◽  
Communication Systems ◽  
Animal Communication ◽  
Small World ◽  
Complex Signal ◽  
Song Type ◽  
Form Complex ◽  
Combinatorial Properties ◽  
Network Measures ◽  
Song Types

The singing of song birds can form complex signal systems comprised of numerous subunits sung with distinct combinatorial properties that have been described as syntax-like. This complexity has inspired inquiries into similarities of bird song to human language; but the quantitative analysis and description of song sequences is a challenging task. In this study, we analysed song sequences of common nightingales ( Luscinia megarhynchos ) by means of a network analysis. We translated long nocturnal song sequences into networks of song types with song transitions as connectors. As network measures, we calculated shortest path length and transitivity and identified the ‘small-world’ character of nightingale song networks. Besides comparing network measures with conventional measures of song complexity, we also found a correlation between network measures and age of birds. Furthermore, we determined the numbers of in-coming and out-going edges of each song type, characterizing transition patterns. These transition patterns were shared across males for certain song types. Playbacks with different transition patterns provided first evidence that these patterns are responded to differently and thus play a role in singing interactions. We discuss potential functions of the network properties of song sequences in the framework of vocal leadership. Network approaches provide biologically meaningful parameters to describe the song structure of species with extremely large repertoires and complex rules of song retrieval.

scholarly journals Inhibition within a premotor circuit controls the timing of vocal turn-taking in zebra finches

2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jonathan I. Benichov ◽  
Daniela Vallentin
Keyword(s):  
Neural Circuit ◽  
Zebra Finches ◽  
Vocal Responses ◽  
Local Inhibition ◽  
Impaired Ability ◽  
Neuron Activation ◽  
Electrophysiological Recordings ◽  
Vocal Signals ◽  
Turn Taking ◽  
Pharmacological Manipulations

AbstractVocal turn-taking is a fundamental organizing principle of human conversation but the neural circuit mechanisms that structure coordinated vocal interactions are unknown. The ability to exchange vocalizations in an alternating fashion is also exhibited by other species, including zebra finches. With a combination of behavioral testing, electrophysiological recordings, and pharmacological manipulations we demonstrate that activity within a cortical premotor nucleus orchestrates the timing of calls in socially interacting zebra finches. Within this circuit, local inhibition precedes premotor neuron activation associated with calling. Blocking inhibition results in faster vocal responses as well as an impaired ability to flexibly avoid overlapping with a partner. These results support a working model in which premotor inhibition regulates context-dependent timing of vocalizations and enables the precise interleaving of vocal signals during turn-taking.

scholarly journals Deceptive vocal duets and multimodal display in a songbird

2017 ◽  
Vol 284 (1864) ◽  
pp. 20171774 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paweł Ręk ◽  
Robert D. Magrath
Keyword(s):  
Group Living ◽  
Visual Display ◽  
Reliable Information ◽  
Song Type ◽  
Visual Displays ◽  
Visual Component ◽  
Song Types ◽  
Multimodal Signalling ◽  
Australian Magpie ◽  
Vocal Duets

Many group-living animals cooperatively signal to defend resources, but what stops deceptive signalling to competitors about coalition strength? Cooperative-signalling species include mated pairs of birds that sing duets to defend their territory. Individuals of these species sometimes sing ‘pseudo-duets’ by mimicking their partner's contribution, but it is unknown if these songs are deceptive, or why duets are normally reliable. We studied pseudo-duets in Australian magpie-larks, Grallina cyanoleuca , and tested whether multimodal signalling constrains deception. Magpie-larks give antiphonal duets coordinated with a visual display, with each sex typically choosing a different song type within the duet. Individuals produced pseudo-duets almost exclusively during nesting when partners were apart, but the two song types were used in sequence rather than antiphonally. Strikingly, birds hid and gave no visual displays, implying deceptive suppression of information. Acoustic playbacks showed that pseudo-duets provoked the same response from residents as true duets, regardless of whether they were sequential or antiphonal, and stronger response than that to true duets consisting of a single song type. By contrast, experiments with robot models showed that songs accompanied by movements of two birds prompted stronger responses than songs accompanied by movements of one bird, irrespective of the number of song types or singers. We conclude that magpie-larks used deceptive pseudo-duets when partners were apart, and suppressed the visual display to maintain the subterfuge. We suggest that the visual component of many species' duets provides the most reliable information about the number of signallers and may have evolved to maintain honesty in duet communication.

SONG CLUSTERING BY MEADOWLARKS: IS IT RELATED TO REPERTOIRE SIZE?

Behaviour ◽  
2000 ◽  
Vol 137 (1) ◽  
pp. 75-92 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
◽  
◽  
◽  
Keyword(s):  
Pca Analysis ◽  
Repertoire Size ◽  
Free Living ◽  
Similar Correlation ◽  
Sturnella Magna ◽  
Different Types ◽  
Song Types ◽  
Song Repertoires

AbstractSome birds with song repertoires sequentially associate (or cluster) songs of different types. That is, certain song types may occur together repeatedly, even on different days. We determined whether clustering of meadowlark songs correlated with repertoire size. We also tested whether clustered songs reflect either their structural similarities, or dissimilarities. Our data were obtained from recordings of free-living individuals of two meadowlark species, eastern, Sturnella magna , and western, S. neglecta . Eastern meadowlarks have approximately 10 times more song types per bird than do westerns. Therefore, if clustering is related to repertoire size, we predicted that there should be (1) proportionately more song clusters in eastern meadowlarks than in westerns, and (2) a similar correlation across individual birds within a species, especially so in easterns, which have a broader range of repertoire sizes. All 14 easterns examined showed clusters whereas only 5 of 11 westerns did so, and the easterns had proportionately more per bird. Many of the same clusters occurred in different recordings of individual easterns. In easterns, the extent of clustering as measured by a PCA analysis correlated strongly with estimated repertoire size. Clustered songs were neither more similar in structure, nor less so, than randomly-paired songs.

Acoustic cues to individual identity in the rattle calls of common blackbirds: a potential for individual recognition through multi-syllabic vocalisations emitted in both territorial and alarm contexts

Behaviour ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 152 (1) ◽  
pp. 57-82 ◽  
Author(s):  
Charline Couchoux ◽  
Torben Dabelsteen
Keyword(s):  
Individual Recognition ◽  
Dual Function ◽  
Individual Identity ◽  
Free Living ◽  
Bird Calls ◽  
Vocal Signals ◽  
The Common ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Types Of Information ◽  
Common Blackbird

Vocal signals convey many types of information, and individually recognizable cues can benefit signallers and receivers, as shown in birdsongs that are used in the contexts of mating and territoriality. Bird calls are typically less complex than songs and thus are likely to convey less information. However, the rattle calls of some species serve a dual function, being emitted as an anti-predator and deterrence signal, and thus may encode information on individual identity. We investigated these questions in the common blackbird (Turdus merula), which emits complex rattle calls in both territorial and alarm contexts. The vocalisations of free-living males were elicited and recorded by playing back songs of unknown males in birds’ territories (territorial context) and also while approaching individuals (predator context). These song-like highly-structured multi-syllabic calls typically had three types of elements. Acoustic and statistical analyses revealed, through elevated repeatability indexes, that most of the acoustic measurements used to describe the complexity of the calls (structural, temporal and frequency parameters) were highly variable, due to inter-individual differences. The size of the call and the characteristics of the starting element only were able to discriminate a high portion of the individual calls. Beyond the very well studied songs of oscines, calls therefore deserve more attention as they also carry a potential for conveying information on individual identity.

scholarly journals Dawn singing behavior of a tropical bird species, the Pied Bush Chat Saxicola caprata

2012 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 241-246 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vinaya Kumar Sethi ◽  
Dinesh Bhatt ◽  
Amit Kumar
Keyword(s):  
Breeding Season ◽  
Social Relationship ◽  
Bird Species ◽  
Extended Period ◽  
Daily Basis ◽  
Sequential Pattern ◽  
Song Type ◽  
Singing Behavior ◽  
Dawn Song ◽  
Song Types

This paper aims to study the structure and pattern of dawn song in a tropical avian species, the Pied Bush Chat (Saxicola caprata) in Haridwar (290 55’ N, 780 08’ E; Uttarakhand, India) in 2009. Males delivered complex dawn chorus on daily basis during only breeding season (February to July). The dawn song bout was made up of a number of distinct sections called song types. Each song type consisted of a series of similar or dissimilar units referred to as elements. Song type length averaged 1.43±0.23 sec and did not differ significantly among males. Theaverage number and types of elements in a song type were observed 8.15±1.64 and 8.01±1.56, respectively.In more than 80% of observations, song types were delivered with immediate variety and males did not follow any definite sequential pattern of song delivery. Males sang continuously for about 30 min at high rates during dawn. Males performed continuous dawn singing throughout the breeding season and seemed to interact vocally through counter-singing for extended period. Observations suggest that dawn song delivery in Pied Bush Chat plays an important role in maintenance and adjustment of social relationship among neighbouring males.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document