A new statistical method to test equivalence: an application in male and female eastern bluebird song

Can we disregard the whole model? Omnibus non‐inferiority testing for R2 in multi‐variable linear regression and in ANOVA

“…Equivalence testing for comparing two nested models will be addressed in future work in which we will consider a non-inferiority test for the increase in and Algina et al (2008) [1]. We also wish to further investigate non-inferiority testing for ANOVA with within-subject designs, following the work of Rose et al (2018) [39].…”

Book review of Prum, R. O. 2018. The evolution of beauty: How Darwin's forgotten theory of mate choice shapes the animal world-and us (2017), Doubleday, 428 pages, ISBN: 9780385537216

“…The book also succeeds portraying a diverse set of scientists as relatable, an important goal of science communication as it can build trust between scientists and the public (Hebets 2018). Furthermore, if the book's effect on evolutionary biology and behavioral ecology is to rattle potentially entrenched assumptions, to raise the bar for evidence of indicator value, to encourage a more thorough consideration of the possibility that displays are arbitrary, or to motivate new statistical tests of arbitrary mate choice (e.g., equivalence tests, Rose et al 2018), then its publication will undoubtedly have a positive impact on scientific progress. Moreover, we appreciate the focus on beauty and aesthetics, as we agree that there is great promise in exploring the relatively untapped interface between evolutionary biology and the psychology and philosophy of art and aesthetics.…”

Large female song repertoires and within‐pair song type sharing in a temperate breeding songbird

“…Conversely, in temperate species, song is more likely to be produced exclusively or primarily by males (Morton, 1996; Slater & Mann, 2004). However, in some temperate species, female song is comparable or more frequent and more elaborate than male song (e.g., streak‐backed oriole (partially temperate), Hall et al., 2010; house wrens, Krieg & Getty, 2016; eastern bluebirds, Rose et al., 2018).…”

“…In other species, the function of female song is variable, from resource defense in the superb fairy‐wren ( Malurus cyaneus ) (Cooney & Cockburn, 1995; Langmore, 2000), to aggressive same‐sex interactions in stripe‐headed sparrows ( Peucaea r. ruficauda ) (Illes, 2015), and pursuit‐deterrence in skylarks ( Alauda arvensis ) (Cresswell, 1994). Male and female song may also differ in acoustic structure, with some studies showing female song to be shorter (Odom et al., 2016), quieter (Rose et al., 2018), less frequent and less complex (Arcese et al., 1988; Beletsky, 1982; Price et al., 2009), or more frequent (Illes, 2015; Price et al., 2008) than male song. Conversely, males and females of some species sing structurally similar songs (Arcese et al., 1988; Campbell et al., 2016; Rose et al., 2018).…”

“…Male and female song may also differ in acoustic structure, with some studies showing female song to be shorter (Odom et al., 2016), quieter (Rose et al., 2018), less frequent and less complex (Arcese et al., 1988; Beletsky, 1982; Price et al., 2009), or more frequent (Illes, 2015; Price et al., 2008) than male song. Conversely, males and females of some species sing structurally similar songs (Arcese et al., 1988; Campbell et al., 2016; Rose et al., 2018). Considering this variation in the functional and structural similarities of male and female song, alongside the underrepresentation of female song in the current literature, we still know relatively little about female song (Odom et al., 2016).…”