scholarly journals Vocal communication in wild chimpanzees: a call rate study

PeerJ ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
pp. e12326
Author(s):  
Anne-Sophie Crunchant ◽  
Fiona A. Stewart ◽  
Alex K. Piel
Keyword(s):  
Vocal Communication ◽  
Vegetation Type ◽  
Species Conservation ◽  
Ecological Factors ◽  
Call Rate ◽  
Adult Males ◽  
Calling Behaviour ◽  
Animal Density ◽  
Travelling Time ◽  
Female Presence

Background Patterns of vocal communication have implications for species conservation: a change in calling behaviour can, for instance, reflect a disturbed habitat. More importantly, call rate is a parameter that allows conservation planners to convert call density into animal density, when detecting calls with a passive acoustic monitoring system (PAM). Methods We investigated chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes schweinfurthii) call rate during the late dry season in the Issa Valley, western Tanzania by conducting focal follows. We examined the socio-ecological factors that influence call production rate of savanna woodland chimpanzees. Results We found that sex, proportion of time spent in a vegetation type, proportion of time spent travelling, time of the day, party size and swollen parous female presence had a significant effect on the call rate. Call rate differed among the different demographic classes with subadult and adult males vocalising twice as often as the subadult and adult females and three times as often as the juveniles. Applications The use of PAM and recent statistical developments to estimate animal density is promising but relies on our knowing individual call rate, often not available for many species. With the improvement in automatic call detection, we anticipate that PAM will increasingly be broadly applied to primates but also across taxa, for conservation.

scholarly journals Effects of male age and female presence on male associations in a large, polygynous mammal in southern India

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
P. Keerthipriya ◽  
S. Nandini ◽  
T.N.C. Vidya
Keyword(s):  
Social Learning ◽  
Ecological Factors ◽  
Social Organisation ◽  
Southern India ◽  
Older Individuals ◽  
Adult Males ◽  
Young Males ◽  
Male Group ◽  
Study Population ◽  
Female Presence

AbstractWe present a detailed study of male associations in a roving species, the Asian elephant, using six years of data on identified, nonmusth males. Adult males spent greater proportions of their time solitarily than in mixed-sex or in all-male groups. Old (over 30 years) males were sighted more frequently with their age-peers and less frequently with young (15-30 years) males than expected at random in all-male groups. Young males were not sighted more frequently with old males than with young males, and did not disproportionately initiate associations with old males. These results suggest that male associations, in the absence of females, primarily allow for old nonmusth males to test strengths against age-peers. Social learning from older individuals did not seem to be important in male associations, unlike that observed in African savannah elephants. We also found a constraint on the sizes of all-male groups, similar to that seen in female groups in our study population, and with male group sizes being smaller than that of African savannah elephants. However, most males had a significant top associate in female absence. In mixed-sex groups, male associations occurred at random, suggesting that males were tracking female groups independently. Thus, we find some differences in male social organisation compared to the phylogenetically related African savannah elephant that occupies a similar niche, and suggest that ecological factors might have shaped the differences in these male societies.

scholarly journals Field Propagation Experiments of Male African Savanna Elephant Rumbles: A Focus on the Transmission of Formant Frequencies

Animals ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (10) ◽  
pp. 167 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anton Baotic ◽  
Maxime Garcia ◽  
Markus Boeckle ◽  
Angela Stoeger
Keyword(s):  
Fundamental Frequency ◽  
Vocal Communication ◽  
Vocal Tract ◽  
Natural Habitat ◽  
Ecological Factors ◽  
Transmission Efficiency ◽  
Long Distance ◽  
African Savanna ◽  
Formant Frequencies ◽  
Resonance Frequencies

African savanna elephants live in dynamic fission–fusion societies and exhibit a sophisticated vocal communication system. Their most frequent call-type is the ‘rumble’, with a fundamental frequency (which refers to the lowest vocal fold vibration rate when producing a vocalization) near or in the infrasonic range. Rumbles are used in a wide variety of behavioral contexts, for short- and long-distance communication, and convey contextual and physical information. For example, maturity (age and size) is encoded in male rumbles by formant frequencies (the resonance frequencies of the vocal tract), having the most informative power. As sound propagates, however, its spectral and temporal structures degrade progressively. Our study used manipulated and resynthesized male social rumbles to simulate large and small individuals (based on different formant values) to quantify whether this phenotypic information efficiently transmits over long distances. To examine transmission efficiency and the potential influences of ecological factors, we broadcasted and re-recorded rumbles at distances of up to 1.5 km in two different habitats at the Addo Elephant National Park, South Africa. Our results show that rumbles were affected by spectral–temporal degradation over distance. Interestingly and unlike previous findings, the transmission of formants was better than that of the fundamental frequency. Our findings demonstrate the importance of formant frequencies for the efficiency of rumble propagation and the transmission of information content in a savanna elephant’s natural habitat.

scholarly journals Identifying essential ecological factors underpinning the development of a conservation plan for the Endangered Australian tree Alectryon ramiflorus

Oryx ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 49 (3) ◽  
pp. 453-460 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter J. Brown ◽  
Kevin R. Wormington ◽  
Philip Brown
Keyword(s):  
Soil Chemistry ◽  
Vegetation Type ◽  
Ecological Factors ◽  
Iucn Red List ◽  
Habitat Requirements ◽  
As Species ◽  
Disjunct Populations ◽  
Conservation Plan ◽  
Sparse Population ◽  
Individual Trees

AbstractReintroduction of rare and threatened species often fails to yield quantifiable conservation benefits because insufficient attention is focused on the species’ habitat requirements and biology. We demonstrate the value of such data in informing a recovery plan for Alectryon ramiflorus S.Reyn. (Sapindaceae), a tree species endemic to a region on the southern coast of Queensland, Australia. When the species was categorized as Endangered on the IUCN Red List in 1997 the total known population consisted of only 26 adult plants, in five disjunct populations in remnant patches of native vegetation. Analysis of vegetation type, soil chemistry and composition data comparing remnant patches with and without A. ramiflorus revealed that the species is not restricted to a specific soil type but prefers sites with relatively fertile soil and a more complex vegetation structure. The species is cryptically dioecious, displays asynchronous flowering between individuals, and requires insect-vectored pollination. The low rate of seedling production recorded within individual patches was attributed to the scarcity of trees of both genders, asynchronous flowering of individual trees and, in smaller patches, a sparse population of pollinating insect species. Successful reintroduction of A. ramiflorus will require consideration of these aspects of demographic success. The findings highlight the importance to species recovery plans of the knowledge of habitat requirements, interspecific relationships and critical dependencies, as well as species reproductive biology.

scholarly journals Birth season glucocorticoids are related to the presence of infants in sifaka ( Propithecus verreauxi )

2009 ◽  
Vol 276 (1663) ◽  
pp. 1855-1863 ◽  
Author(s):  
Diane K. Brockman ◽  
Amy K. Cobden ◽  
Patricia L. Whitten
Keyword(s):  
Stress Responses ◽  
Physiological Stress ◽  
Ecological Factors ◽  
Adult Males ◽  
Birth Season ◽  
Propithecus Verreauxi ◽  
Group Stability ◽  
Dispersal Events ◽  
Free Ranging ◽  
Plural Breeding

The responses of plural breeding mammals to environmental stressors are little understood in free-ranging populations, but recent studies of singular breeders suggest that ecological factors and social milieu influence the variable physiological stress responses observed among individuals. Our previous studies examining faecal glucocorticoid (fGC)–behaviour interactions in plural breeding male sifaka ( Propithecus verreauxi ) show that fGC elevations coincide with specific dispersal events, particularly the eviction of subordinates by resident alpha males. This study examined the utility of fGC assays for assessing the stress responses of male sifaka to demographic changes in the population during the birth season. Analyses were based on 889 faecal samples collected over five birth seasons from 124 adult males residing in 55 different groups at Beza Mahafaly, Madagascar. Results show that fGC levels in males are unrelated to age, residence, group stability or rank, but are significantly and positively correlated with the presence of infants, annual elevations in weekly mean fGC concentrations in males paralleling increasing numbers of infants born annually in the population. These data are the first to show that in seasonal plural breeding species such as sifaka, elevated fGC in males reflects specific events related to reproduction rather than states or social context during the birth season.

scholarly journals Distributional range, ecology, and mating system of the Cape mole-rat (Georychus capensis) family Bathyergidae

2017 ◽  
Vol 95 (10) ◽  
pp. 713-726 ◽  
Author(s):  
J.H. Visser ◽  
N.C. Bennett ◽  
B. Jansen van Vuuren
Keyword(s):  
Life History ◽  
Mating System ◽  
Vegetation Type ◽  
Ecological Factors ◽  
Disjunct Distribution ◽  
Testis Size ◽  
Extrinsic Factors ◽  
Mole Rat ◽  
Testicular Size ◽  
Life History Patterns

Interpopulation variation in life-history patterns are influenced by intrinsic and extrinsic factors. Life-history patterns have been intensely studied in the eusocial African bathyergid species, largely neglecting the solitary species. Of these solitary genera, the Cape mole-rat (Georychus capensis (Pallas, 1778)) is endemic to South Africa with a disjunct distribution across its range. Knowledge regarding this species is rudimentary; therefore, this study aimed to investigate the current distribution of the species with particular attention to common ecological variables, differences in body size between localities and sexes, as well as its reproduction and mating system. Georychus is a habitat specialist restricted to specific ecological areas. A lack of sexual size dimorphism and correlation between male testis size and number of females in the population, suggests a polygynous mating system, facilitated by the spatial distribution of the sexes. A positive relationship between male testes size and percentage of females in populations sampled suggests that larger sperm reserves (i.e., larger testes) are required in populations with a higher percentage of females. In addition, mating variables (testicular size and litter size) are linked to ecological factors (elevation, aridity, soil type, and vegetation type) that could impact mate searching, mating success, and food resources.

scholarly journals Determinants of differences in the activity budgets of Rhinopithecus bieti by age/sex class at Xiangguqing in the Baimaxueshan nature reserve, China

2015 ◽  
Vol 67 (2) ◽  
pp. 675-683 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yanhong Li ◽  
Dayong Li ◽  
Baoping Ren ◽  
Jie Hu ◽  
Baoguo Li ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Nature Reserve ◽  
Reproductive Investment ◽  
Ecological Factors ◽  
Developmental Differences ◽  
Adult Males ◽  
Activity Budgets ◽  
Rhinopithecus Bieti ◽  
Adult Females ◽  
Class 1 ◽  
In The Wild

Ecological factors are known to influence the activity budgets of Yunnan snub-nosed monkeys (Rhinopithecus bieti). However, little is known about how activity budgets vary between age/sex classes, because the species is difficult to observe in the wild. This study provides the first detailed activity budgets subdivided by age/sex classes based on observations of the largest habituated group at Xiangguqing in Baimaxueshan Nature Reserve. This study was conducted from June 2008 to May 2009. We found that adult females spent more time feeding (44.8%) than adult males (39.5%), juveniles (39.1%), and infants (14.2%). Adult males allocated more time to miscellaneous activities (12.5%) than did adult females (3.8%). Infants were being groomed 6.9% of the time, which was the highest proportion among all age/sex classes. Adults spent more time feeding, while immature individuals allocated more time to moving and other activities. There are several reasons activity budgets may vary by age/sex class: 1) differential reproductive investment between males and females; 2) developmental differences among the age categories; 3) social relationships between members of different age/sex classes, particularly dominance. In addition, group size and adult sex ratio may also impact activity budgets. These variations in activity budgets among the different age/sex classes may become a selective pressure that shapes the development and growth pattern in this species. <br><br><font color="red"><b> This article has been retracted. Link to the retraction <u><a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.2298/ABS160112009E">10.2298/ABS160112009E</a><u></b></font>

scholarly journals The forgotten habitats in conservation: early successional vegetation

2019 ◽  
Vol 67 (2SUPL) ◽  
pp. S36-S52
Author(s):  
Luis Sandoval ◽  
Carlos-O. Morales ◽  
José-D. Ramírez-Fernández ◽  
Paul Hanson ◽  
Luis-Ricardo Murillo-Hiller ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Urban Areas ◽  
Species Interactions ◽  
Vegetation Type ◽  
Species Conservation ◽  
Central Valley ◽  
General Information ◽  
Secondary Forests ◽  
Natural Habitats ◽  
Successional Stages ◽  
Successional Vegetation

Conservation efforts in  terrestrial environments have focused on preserving patches of natural habitats and restoring disturbed habitats, with the main goal of transforming them into forests or habitats that resemble the original conditions. This approach tends to overlook the importance of conserving early successional vegetation (e.g., riverside vegetation, natural regeneration, young secondary forests), which often includes a large number of species (e.g., plants and animals) associated with or restricted to these habitats. In this paper we want to bring to attention the importance of preserving early successional vegetation, and to encourage scientists to investigate, e.g., the diversity, distribution, and species interactions occurring in these habitats. To address these goals, we focus on two main objectives: (1) to identify the common types of early successional vegetation in the Costa Rican Central Valley; and (2) to use some case studies to draw attention to the importance that such areas have as reservoirs of a large portion of the diversity unique to early successional stages. We first include an example to show the diversity of plants in small forest patches immersed in a large urbanized area. We provide general information on the insects that occur in early successional vegetation in urban areas, and in further detail examples of butterflies. Additionally, we provide examples of birds and mammals that are restricted to early successional vegetation, and how the reduction of this vegetation type affects species conservation. Finally, we encourage scientists to investigate these early successional habitats, particularly those species exclusive to early successional stages. Special attention should be paid to endemic species and those with a restricted distribution. Information of this type will make conservation of the diversity contained in these habitats possible.

scholarly journals Roosting behaviour of the endangered Sichuan Hill-partridge Arborophila rufipectus during the breeding season

2008 ◽  
Vol 18 (3) ◽  
pp. 260-266 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wenbo Liao ◽  
Jinchu Hu ◽  
Cao Li ◽  
Xin Lu
Keyword(s):  
Species Conservation ◽  
Tree Height ◽  
Primary Forest ◽  
Brooding Female ◽  
Adult Males ◽  
Broadleaf Forest ◽  
Breeding Territory ◽  
A Site ◽  
Trees And Shrubs ◽  
Median Height

AbstractRoosting behaviour in diurnal ground-dwelling birds is important to their conservation as they are particularly vulnerable to predation when on their roosts. In 2005, we studied the roosting behaviour of the globally ‘Endangered’ Sichuan Hill-partridge (Arborophila rufipectus) in Laojunshan Nature Reserve, southwest China, a site dominated by evergreen broadleaf forest. Our study showed that the birds roosted on elevated perches and roosting behaviour was associated with social organization. Breeding males roosted alone within their territories before mating or during the female's involvement in incubation, but at other times they roosted with the female bird. After hatching of the brood, the adult males roosted on the ground close to the brooding female for about two weeks. After this time the male left the female and chicks to roost elsewhere in the territory. High vegetation cover around the perch site was a key predictor of roosting sites for the partridges. Only six out of 84 tree and shrub species were typically used by the roosting birds, although individual roosting plants varied from night to night. The median height of roosting plants was 6.9 (3.8–10.5) m, which was significantly lower than many shrubs within the breeding territory. Perches were 1.7–6.4 (median = 2.7) m from the ground and independent of roost tree height, suggesting an optimum roosting height. The partridges preferred roosting sites with denser shrub vegetation. In terms of the species' conservation, our results highlight the importance of protecting primary forest that contains suitable roosting trees and shrubs.

VOCAL COMMUNICATION AND INDIVIDUAL VARIATION IN BREEDING SOUTH AMERICAN SEA LIONS

Behaviour ◽  
1999 ◽  
Vol 136 (4) ◽  
pp. 495-517 ◽  
Author(s):  
Esteban Fern Ndez-Juricic ◽  
Victor Enriquez ◽  
Claudio Campagna ◽  
Charles Leo Ortiz
Keyword(s):  
Individual Variation ◽  
Vocal Communication ◽  
Social Contexts ◽  
Relative Advantage ◽  
South American ◽  
Adult Males ◽  
Aggressive Interactions ◽  
Sea Lions ◽  
Acoustic Environments ◽  
Pup Development

AbstractThe purpose of this study was to analyse the structure, social contexts, and individual variation of South American sea lion (Otaria flavescens) airborne vocal communication during the breeding season. This is the first comprehensive analysis of the vocal repertoire of this species. Since breeding colonies are complex acoustic environments, we expect that male, female, and pup vocalizations would show individuality, and that individual variation would rely on several acoustic traits. We identified four calls for adult males: high pitched call or HPC (aggressive interactions, such as attack and retreat displays, and fights), bark (aggressive interactions, territory establishment, and usually combined with growls), growl (male-female interactions), and exhalation (after agonistic encounters); and two for adult females: mother primary call or MPC (female-pup interactions, such as after birth, during pup separation, and pup development), and grunt (agonistic interactions between females). Juveniles vocalized yearling primary calls or YPC (searching for their mothers or after being threatened by females), pups gave pup primary calls or PPC (in response to MPCs, when hungry, searching for their mothers, if nursing was interrupted, or when trying to nurse). Our results suggest that male's HPC and bark, female's MPC, and pup's PPC have acoustic features that support individuality. These calls are associated with contexts in which recognition of neighbours (HPC and bark) or relatives (MPC and PPC) may confer a relative advantage in reproductive performance. Individual variation depended on frequency, temporal, and intensity traits; such multi-trait individuality could be regarded as an adaptation to colonial life to overcome the high noise levels within pinniped breeding colonies.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document