Variation of repertoire use in the eastern meadowlark, Sturnella magna

1983 ◽  
Vol 61 (5) ◽  
pp. 1086-1093 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lorraine G. d'Agincourt ◽  
J. Bruce Falls
Keyword(s):  
Breeding Season ◽  
Seasonal Trend ◽  
Territorial Defense ◽  
Mate Attraction ◽  
Singing Behavior ◽  
Sturnella Magna ◽  
Males And Females ◽  
Song Types

The singing behavior of nine eastern meadowlark (Sturnella magna) males was examined over the 1980 breeding season for changes in versatility (use of different song types and switching between song types). The greatest degree of versatility occurred during territorial defense; the use of one-song bouts rose from 33.1% during nonchase periods to 64.9% during intraspecific encounters. Versatility also showed a seasonal trend, peaking during courtship and decreasing through the incubation, nestling, and fledgling stages. No relationship was evident between versatility characteristic of a male and the number of females obtained. Thus, while versatility may have increased during encounters with both sexes, it apparently did not influence mate attraction. These results are consistent with the hypothesis that repertoires reduce habituation in listeners. The data also support a derivative explanation that song variety serves as a graded signal indicating the tendency of a singer to interact with other males and females.

Aerial pursuit flights in the shoveler

1974 ◽  
Vol 52 (12) ◽  
pp. 1473-1480 ◽  
Author(s):  
Norman R. Seymour
Keyword(s):  
Breeding Season ◽  
Quantitative Description ◽  
Wild Birds ◽  
Flight Behavior ◽  
Territorial Defense ◽  
Qualitative And Quantitative ◽  
Active Mechanism ◽  
Seasonal Basis ◽  
Males And Females

Analysis of 266 pursuit flights of wild birds provided a qualitative and quantitative description of aspects of this phenomenon. Flight behavior and frequency were analyzed for the general prelaying, laying, incubation, and renesting periods.Flight behavior of pursued males and females and that of the pursuing male varied little throughout the breeding season. No difference was detected on a daily basis.Flight frequency was greatest during the morning (0500 to 1000 h) period throughout the season. On a seasonal basis, frequency was greatest during territory establishment and declined after general incubation began. Another peak of activity occurred during the renesting period. Frequency during all periods reflected the number of non-territorial pairs interacting with territorial pairs.Attempted rape and associated flight was rare, with most flights apparently resulting from hostility associated with territorial defense. The pursuer was invariably a territorial male.The pursuit flight functioned in the establishment and maintenance of territories and was the major active mechanism in the spacing of breeding pairs.

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.

scholarly journals Sex Differences in Singing and Duetting Behavior of Neotropical Rufous-and-White Wrens (Thryothorus Rufalbus)

The Auk ◽  
2005 ◽  
Vol 122 (1) ◽  
pp. 175-186 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel J. Mennill ◽  
Sandra L. Vehrencamp
Keyword(s):  
Sex Differences ◽  
Bird Species ◽  
Repertoire Size ◽  
Male And Female ◽  
Conflict And Cooperation ◽  
Singing Behavior ◽  
Singing Activity ◽  
Males And Females ◽  
Thryothorus Rufalbus ◽  
Song Types

AbstractIn many tropical bird species, males and females sing together in coordinated vocal duets. Although studies of duetting present unique opportunities for understanding conflict and cooperation between the sexes, very few investigations describe the similarities and differences between male and female singing behaviors. Here, we present the first detailed account of the singing behavior of Rufous-and-white Wrens (Thryothorus rufalbus), a resident tropical duetting songbird. Male and female songs share a similar structure, yet show pronounced sex differences. Male songs have lower frequency characteristics and more repeated trill syllables, and often sound louder than female songs. Males sing more than females, and only males show elevated song output at dawn. Both males and females have song repertoires. Males have an average repertoire size of 10.8 song types, whereas females have a significantly smaller average repertoire size of 8.5 song types. Although males share proportionately more of their song types with neighbors than females do, both sexes share more song types with nearby individuals than with distant individuals. Breeding partners combine their solo songs to create duets. Duets assume a variety of different forms, ranging from simple, overlapping male and female songs to complex combinations of multiple male and female songs. Most duets (73%) are created by females responding to male song. Males respond to female-initiated duets with shorter latencies than when females respond to male-initiated duets. Each pair sings certain combinations of song types in duets more often than can be explained by random association, which demonstrates that Rufous-and-white Wrens have duet types. The most common duet type was different for each pair. Our results show that Rufous-and-white Wrens have pronounced sex differences in song structure, singing activity, repertoire size, repertoire sharing, and duetting behavior.Diferencias entre Sexos en el Canto y Comportamiento de Dueto en Thryothorus rufalbus

Observation on the breeding biology of Polypedates teraiensis (Dubois, 1987) (Amphibia: Rhacophoridae)

2017 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
pp. 25-32
Author(s):  
Jacinta Lalchhanhimi ◽  
Lalremsanga H.T.
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Dimorphism ◽  
Breeding Season ◽  
Sound Production ◽  
Reproductive Function ◽  
Breeding Biology ◽  
Tree Frog ◽  
University Campus ◽  
Morphometric Measurements ◽  
Advertisement Calls ◽  
Males And Females

The breeding biology of tree frog, Polypedates teraiensis was studied during the breeding season at Mizoram University Campus. It was found that sound production by male during the breeding season was primarily a reproductive function and advertisement calls attract females to the breeding areas and announce other males that a given territory is occupied. The aim of this study was to provide the detailed information on the breeding behaviour and the advertisement calls of Polypedates teraiensis. The morphometric measurements of the amplecting pairs (males and females) for sexual dimorphism along with clutch sizes were also studied.

2. Mating systems, or who goes with whom, and for how long

2018 ◽  
pp. 16-33
Author(s):  
Leigh W. Simmons
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Selection ◽  
Mating System ◽  
Social Relationships ◽  
Breeding Season ◽  
Mating Systems ◽  
Practical Applications ◽  
Multiple Partners ◽  
Monogamous Species ◽  
Genetic Techniques ◽  
Males And Females

‘Mating systems, or who goes with whom, and for how long’ examines the variation in how males and females associate during the breeding season, ranging from brief couplings with multiple partners to lifelong monogamy. It also shows how the discovery that females mate with many partners, even in supposedly monogamous species such as songbirds, was made possible by modern genetic techniques. Variation in mating systems holds considerable implications for the operation of sexual selection. The way that animal mating systems have been explained historically is outlined before considering how a more contemporary understanding of genetic and social relationships has reshaped our thinking and how understanding a species’ mating system can have practical applications.

Males and females of the social wasp Ropalidia marginata do not differ in their cuticular hydrocarbon profiles and do not seem to use any long-distance volatile mate attraction cues

2015 ◽  
Vol 62 (3) ◽  
pp. 281-289 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Mitra ◽  
R. Palavalli Nettimi ◽  
A. Ramachandran ◽  
P. Saha ◽  
R. Gadagkar
Keyword(s):  
Cuticular Hydrocarbon ◽  
Social Wasp ◽  
Ropalidia Marginata ◽  
Long Distance ◽  
Mate Attraction ◽  
The Social ◽  
Males And Females

Geographic Variation in Song of Gambel's White-Crowned Sparrow

Behaviour ◽  
1998 ◽  
Vol 135 (3) ◽  
pp. 321-342 ◽  
Author(s):  
Douglas Nelson
Keyword(s):  
Species Recognition ◽  
Local Level ◽  
Acoustic Features ◽  
Long Distance ◽  
Zonotrichia Leucophrys ◽  
Song Recognition ◽  
Song Variation ◽  
Males And Females ◽  
Dialect Recognition ◽  
Song Types

AbstractWhite-crowned sparrow (Zonotrichia leucophrys) song varies geographically, often forming local 'dialects' in sedentary and short-distance migratory subspecies. In playback experiments males and females can distinguish this variation. Gambel's white-crowned sparrow (Z. L. gambelii) is a long-distance migrant that breeds across subarctic Canada and Alaska. Previous studies identified a wide degree of song variation within local populations of this subspecies. I compared songs recorded in Alaska and Churchill, Manitoba, and found significant differences in acoustic structure. As in other subspecies, the most prominent differences occurred in the terminal trill portion of the song. In a playback experiment to territorial males at Churchill, males gave equivalent strong responses to both Alaska and local gambelii song, significantly weaker responses to mountain white-crowned sparrow (Z. L. oriantha) song, and the weakest responses to heterospecific song. I describe a model of song recognition in which 'dialect recognition' is a component of species recognition. I conclude that as a consequence of differences in the timing of song learning, the subspecies of white-crowned sparrow may differ in the acoustic features that they attend to in song recognition. The diversity of song types at a local level within gambelii populations may interfere with recognizing song differences between populations.

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.

Reproduction in the Ningbing Antechinus (Marsupialia, Dasyuridae) - Field and Laboratory Observations

1988 ◽  
Vol 15 (2) ◽  
pp. 149 ◽  
Author(s):  
PA Woolley
Keyword(s):  
Breeding Season ◽  
Western Australia ◽  
Sexual Maturity ◽  
Males And Females

The ningbing antechinus is a species of small dasyurid marsupial found in the Kimberley region of Western Australia. Observations on reproduction have been made on newly captured and laboratory maintained specimens. The breeding season is short and mating occurs in June. The young are born after a long gestation, estimated to be between 45 and 52 days, in late July and early August. They are weaned in November when about 16 weeks old and they reach sexual maturity at 10-11 months, in the first breeding season after birth. Both males and females are potentially capable of breeding in a second season.

scholarly journals Blue-Throated Hummingbird Song: A Pinnacle of Nonoscine Vocalizations

The Auk ◽  
2000 ◽  
Vol 117 (1) ◽  
pp. 120-128 ◽  
Author(s):  
Millicent Sigler Ficken ◽  
Kathryn M. Rusch ◽  
Sandra J. Taylor ◽  
Donald R. Powers
Keyword(s):  
Individual Differences ◽  
Structure And Function ◽  
Mate Attraction ◽  
Temporal Aspects ◽  
Males And Females ◽  
And Function ◽  
Vocal Complexity

Abstract Little is known about the structure and function of hummingbird vocalizations. We studied the vocalizations of Blue-throated Hummingbirds (Lampornis clemenciae) at two sites in southeastern Arizona. Songs were produced by males and females. Male songs consisted of arrays of notes organized in clusters of “song units.” Within sites, all males shared the same song units. Individual differences occurred in some temporal aspects of song, and slight but consistent differences in note structure occurred between the two sites. The organization of units within songs was marked by rigid syntax, and long songs were produced by agglutination of units. Male songs may function in territorial advertisement and mate attraction. Female songs were very different acoustically from those of males and typically were given when females were within a few centimeters of a male. In these situations, the female's song often overlapped temporally with the male's song. Of the hummingbird species studied so far, the Blue-throated Hummingbird has the most complex songs and is the only known species with complex female songs. Blue-throated Hummingbirds show convergence with oscines in vocal complexity, song organization, song function, and possible learning of some song elements.

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