Dysfunctions in the territorial form: the case of Valencia.

It is possible to associate the idea of territorial harmony with the idea of territorial function. The perception of a territory with distributed uses that allow the observer to identify its functions and a landscape, urban and territorial, appropriate to the uses, generates a sense of harmony or order of “things”, uses, in the territory. To the contrary, when, for example, people observe a natural space or resource as agricultural lands, where other external uses are located, such as industrial installations or transport infrastructures, the observer perceives a disorderly, degraded and dysfunctional landscape. This idea can serve as a basis to analyze the territorial forms. This article aims to analyze the territorial dysfunctions that have occurred in the process of transformation of the metropolitan area of Valencia and propose actions to manage the territory to sustainability. In metropolitan areas, such as the case of Valencia, there are usually spaces of great environmental value that give an environmental service as an ecological pantry for the population. However, in recent times, many of these spaces have undergone processes of urban sprawl that have produced a collapse of territorial harmony. In addition, mature metropolitan areas have low or no population growth while the artificial territory continues to increase. It is necessary to promote positive initiatives to identify and manage the green infrastructure. This implies a structural review of territorial management processes to achieve sustainability.

Effects of Pair Bond and Presence of Conspecifics On Singing in Captive Zebra Finches

Undirected Song is commonly performed in wild and captive zebra finches and is typically given by males partly isolated from other members of the flock or colony. It has no territorial function nor it is used during precoital courtship; its frequency varies strongly among individuals. However, its rate of performance is severely limited by the close proximity of conspecifics, and this study investigated what social factors are responsible for this constraint in first-generation offspring of wild-caught zebra finches. The close presence of females caused a greater reduction in singing than did that of males. Familiarity between companions and the singer was also a factor that reduced the rate of singing. The more familiar the singer became with a female the more often he would sing in her presence, whereas the opposite occurred with males - singing was more prevalent with strangers than with familiar companions. Pair formation reduced a singer's sensitivity to inhibitory factors associated with the close proximity of conspecifics. Simple visual and auditory contact with a conspecific was not sufficient to constrain Undirected Singing, but intense, close range interactions appear to be necessary. It is hypothesised that Undirected Singing is used to attract females for pair formation or extra-pair mating, but the close proximity of male companions and/or the mate hampers this. However, in a competitive mate choice experiment there was no significant correlation between the rate at which a male gave Undirected Song and order of the pair formation. This suggests that Undirected Singing may not be crucial in the ultimate choice of a mate, but it may still be a useful cue at the outset of pair formation.

Loud Calls of the Yellow-Bellied Glider, Petaurus-Australis - Territorial Behavior by an Arboreal Marsupial

The yellow-bellied glider, Petaurus australis, is possibly the most vocal of all marsupials but little attention has been given to the functional significance of its calling behaviour. This study describes various traits of the calling behaviour and examines their significance. The traits were: (i) calling occurred throughout the night but was more frequent in the first 3 h of activity; (ii) calling frequency was significantly greater near the boundary (9.1 calls per 30 min) rather than the core (2 calls per 30 min) of glider home ranges; (iii) calling and gliding were highly correlated; (iv) calling rate was influenced by a glider's feeding behaviour; and (v) experimental playback of calls (simulating an intruder) resulted in calling rates by gliders that were significantly higher after the playback (6.3 calls per 15 min) than before the playback (2.8 calls per 15 min). Gliders approached the area of playback in 50% of tests; in one instance from a distance of 200 m. Assessment of the calling behaviour of gliders, by reference to seven functions proposed for loud calls of primates, indicates that the most likely function of calls is to mediate intergroup spacing. The traits of the calling behaviour, together with the observation that glider home ranges are virtually exclusive of those of neighbouring groups, suggest that calls serve a territorial function. The use of vocalisations appears to be the most effective method for advertising territories, which commonly exceed 50 ha. A review of the use of loud calls by other species of arboreal marsupial showed that at present there are insufficient data to enable an adequate assessment of the function of loud calls among these species.

Territorial Marking With Faeces in Badgers (Meles Meles) : a Comparison of Boundary and Hinterland Latrine Use

Badgers (Meles meles) defecate, urinate and scent mark at latrines which seem to have a territorial function. The main aim of the present study was to compare defecation patterns at boundary and hinterland latrines, in order to test the hypothesis that these two types of latrine have a similar function. We investigated latrine use by means of a year-round survey of all the latrines in 7 badger territories, by bait-marking of 15 territories, and by monitoring latrine use in 6 radio-collared badgers belonging to three social groups. The spatial distribution of latrines within a territory was bimodal, with the greatest densities oflatrines close to the outside, and close to the centre, of the territory respectively. Boundary latrines were larger and more consistently used than hinterland latrines, but these differences could be accounted for by the fact that boundary latrines are visited by the members of more than one social group. Defecation at latrines was subject to seasonal variation, with a major peak in latrine use in spring and a minor peak in autumn. The spring peak was largely attributable to an increase in the use of hinterland latrines, the autumn peak to an increase in the use of boundary latrines. Males visited boundary latrines considerably more often than did females, but both sexes visited hinterland latrines equally often. Overmarking occurred equally often at both types of latrine and involved animals from the same as well as from different groups, but there was a significant tendency for more between-group than within-group overmarking. Overmarking occurred mainly on fresh, as opposed to old, faeces deposits. The sex and seasonal differences in use of boundary latrines suggest that these function at least partly as a form of mate-guarding, to deter neighbouring males from entering a territory for mating purposes. It is less clear why females mark at hinterland latrines. One possibility, consistent with the observed spatial distribution of hinterland latrines, is that they function to defend the main burrow system, which is used for breeding; another is that they carry information about social status. Overmarking probably serves to obliterate the marks of competitors, which are members of neighbouring social groups in the case of boundary latrines, but may be members of the same social group in the case of hinterland latrines. We conclude that previous ideas about the function of territoriality in badgers, and about the information conveyed by latrines, are oversimplified.

Species-specific recognition in birds: an experimental investigation of Wilson's storm-petrel (Procellariiformes, Hydrobatidae) by means of digitalized signals

Most acoustic studies on birds dealing with species specificity have concerned the territorial function of the song in passerines. We studied species specificity in a non-passerine bird, Wilson's storm-petrel (Oceanites oceanicus). Males of this species attract females by uttering a chattering call, which acts as a premating isolating mechanism. We analysed the encoding of species specificity in the call by measuring the variation in its physical features. We then experimented in the field with played-back computer-synthesized signals and identified the relevant cues that elicited species recognition, namely the modal frequency and the durations of both syllable and silence. We relate our results to species specificity in passerines, and emphasize differences in the responses with respect to sex and status of responding birds, the differences being due to the meaning of the species-specific signal for the receiver.