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.

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.

Distribution and Variability of Song Types in the Wood Thrush

Behaviour ◽  
1987 ◽  
Vol 103 (1-3) ◽  
pp. 49-67 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carl L. Whitney ◽  
Joan Miller
Keyword(s):  
Geographical Variation ◽  
Local Population ◽  
Geographical Range ◽  
Song Type ◽  
Wood Thrush ◽  
Relative Abundances ◽  
Song Types ◽  
Over Time

AbstractCompared to the song of other oscine species, wood thrush song shows little macro-geographical variation: 1) Most song types defined for a local population are widespread over the geographical range, 2) the relative abundances of different song types are similar in samples taken from different locations, and 3) a given song type is no more variable in structure over the geographical range than within a local population. Wood thrush song also shows little microgeographical variation. The degree of song type sharing does not vary as a function of the distance between males in a local population. Song remains stable over time in a local population, as indicated by a similarity in the relative abundances of song types in samples taken 14 years apart. Regarding the distribution of song types among repertoires, 1) Different combinations of song types within repertoires occur no more or less often than expected by chance, 2) different versions of a single song type are distributed at random among repertoires, 3) large repertoires do not contain a greater proportion of rare (unclassified) songs than small repertoires, and 4) rare songs are not clustered in the repertoires of certain individuals.

scholarly journals Cues to individual identity in songs of songbirds: testing general song characteristics in Chiffchaffs Phylloscopus collybita

2017 ◽  
Vol 158 (4) ◽  
pp. 911-924 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexandra Průchová ◽  
Pavel Jaška ◽  
Pavel Linhart
Keyword(s):  
Individual Variation ◽  
Individual Identity ◽  
Song Type ◽  
Song Repertoire ◽  
Change Over Time ◽  
Long Time ◽  
Acoustic Identification ◽  
Song Types ◽  
Over Time

Abstract Individual variation in vocalizations has been widely studied among different animal taxa, and it is commonly reported that vocalizations could be potentially used to monitor individuals in many species. Songbirds represent a challenging group of animals for the study of signalling of individual identity. They are highly vocal, but their songs are complex and can change over time. In this study, we tested whether general song characteristics, which are independent of song type, can be used to discriminate and consistently identify Chiffchaff males within and between days and between years. There was individual variation in songs of recorded Chiffchaffs, and it was possible to easily discriminate between males at any one point in time. However, the level of re-identification of males across days and years was low. For effective identification it was necessary to compare songs of a single song type. However, Chiffchaffs haphazardly switch among song types, sometimes singing the same song type for a long time, making it difficult to collect equivalent song types or to sample the birds’ full repertoires. For example, 5-min recordings of males taken in different years did not contain equivalent song types, leading to low identification success. Although we were not successful in the re-identification of males based on general song characteristics, we discuss methods of acoustic identification which are not dependent on song repertoire content and are potentially valuable tools for the study of species such as the Chiffchaff.

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.

Comparative institutional advantage: an obituary

2018 ◽  
Vol 15 (4) ◽  
pp. 569-578
Author(s):  
Filippo Reale
Keyword(s):  
Political Economy ◽  
Institutional Theory ◽  
Early Development ◽  
Varieties Of Capitalism ◽  
Comparative Political Economy ◽  
Over Time

AbstractThe article traces the remains of the theory of “comparative institutional advantage”, which was crucial during the early development of the “varieties of capitalism” approach to economics but fell into oblivion quickly afterwards. It follows the discussions of the concept over time and works out possible reasons – theoretical, methodological, and discursive – for the theory's decay. In conclusion, many arguments of the theory seem outdated today but it is a great witness to thezeitgeistof comparative political economy and institutional theory of the millennium.

scholarly journals Early Development of Locomotor Patterns and Motor Control in Very Young Children at High Risk of Cerebral Palsy, a Longitudinal Case Series

2021 ◽  
Vol 15 ◽  
Author(s):  
Annike Bekius ◽  
Margit M. Bach ◽  
Laura A. van de Pol ◽  
Jaap Harlaar ◽  
Andreas Daffertshofer ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cerebral Palsy ◽  
High Risk ◽  
Young Children ◽  
Early Development ◽  
Muscle Activation ◽  
Brain Lesions ◽  
Very Young Children ◽  
Gait Parameters ◽  
Locomotor Patterns ◽  
Over Time

The first years of life might be critical for encouraging independent walking in children with cerebral palsy (CP). We sought to identify mechanisms that may underlie the impaired development of walking in three young children with early brain lesions, at high risk of CP, via comprehensive instrumented longitudinal assessments of locomotor patterns and muscle activation during walking. We followed three children (P1–P3) with early brain lesions, at high risk of CP, during five consecutive gait analysis sessions covering a period of 1 to 2 years, starting before the onset of independent walking, and including the session during the first independent steps. In the course of the study, P1 did not develop CP, P2 was diagnosed with unilateral and P3 with bilateral CP. We monitored the early development of locomotor patterns over time via spatiotemporal gait parameters, intersegmental coordination (estimated via principal component analysis), electromyography activity, and muscle synergies (determined from 11 bilateral muscles via nonnegative matrix factorization). P1 and P2 started to walk independently at the corrected age of 14 and 22 months, respectively. In both of them, spatiotemporal gait parameters, intersegmental coordination, muscle activation patterns, and muscle synergy structure changed from supported to independent walking, although to a lesser extent when unilateral CP was diagnosed (P2), especially for the most affected leg. The child with bilateral CP (P3) did not develop independent walking, and all the parameters did not change over time. Our exploratory longitudinal study revealed differences in maturation of locomotor patterns between children with divergent developmental trajectories. We succeeded in identifying mechanisms that may underlie impaired walking development in very young children at high risk of CP. When verified in larger sample sizes, our approach may be considered a means to improve prognosis and to pinpoint possible targets for early intervention.

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 Neural synchrony in mother–child conversation: Exploring the role of conversation patterns

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Trinh Nguyen ◽  
Hanna Schleihauf ◽  
Ezgi Kayhan ◽  
Daniel Matthes ◽  
Pascal Vrtička ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Family Environment ◽  
Near Infrared ◽  
Temporal Dynamics ◽  
Neural Synchrony ◽  
Functional Near Infrared Spectroscopy ◽  
Neural Synchronization ◽  
Turn Taking ◽  
Over Time ◽  
Parent Child

Abstract Conversations are an essential form of communication in daily family life. Specific patterns of caregiver–child conversations have been linked to children’s socio-cognitive development and child-relationship quality beyond the immediate family environment. Recently, interpersonal neural synchronization has been proposed as a neural mechanism supporting conversation. Here, we present a functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) hyperscanning study looking at the temporal dynamics of neural synchrony during mother–child conversation. Preschoolers (20 boys and 20 girls, M age 5;07 years) and their mothers (M age 36.37 years) were tested simultaneously with fNIRS hyperscanning while engaging in a free verbal conversation lasting for 4 min. Neural synchrony (using wavelet transform coherence analysis) was assessed over time. Furthermore, each conversational turn was coded for conversation patterns comprising turn-taking, relevance, contingency and intrusiveness. Results from linear mixed-effects modeling revealed that turn-taking, but not relevance, contingency or intrusiveness predicted neural synchronization during the conversation over time. Results are discussed to point out possible variables affecting parent–child conversation quality and the potential functional role of interpersonal neural synchronization for parent–child conversation.

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.

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