Great tits in urban noise benefit from high frequencies in song detection and discrimination

Pohl, Nina U.; Leadbeater, Ellouise; Slabbekoorn, Hans; Klump, Georg M.; Langemann, Ulrike

doi:10.1016/j.anbehav.2011.12.019

Cited by 70 publications

(57 citation statements)

References 37 publications

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“…1). These results are in line with previous studies showing that signal discrimination in background noise deteriorates with decreasing signal-to-noise ratio (Lohr et al, 2003;Pohl et al, 2012). As the sound-pressure level of the test signals in our study was set well above the great tits' masked auditory thresholds (Pohl et al, 2009), we can conclude that energetic masking per se was not the main source for the difference in performance.…”

Section: Echo Discrimination In Background Noisesupporting

confidence: 81%

Effects of signal features and background noise on distance cue discrimination by a songbird

Pohl

Klump

Langemann

2015

Journal of Experimental Biology

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During the transmission of acoustic signals, the spectral and temporal properties of the original signal are degraded, and with increasing distance more and more echo patterns are imposed. It is well known that these physical alterations provide useful cues to assess the distance of a sound source. Previous studies in birds have shown that birds employ the degree of degradation of a signal to estimate the distance of another singing male (referred to as ranging). Little is known about how acoustic masking by background noise interferes with ranging, and if the number of song elements and stimulus familiarity affect the ability to discriminate between degraded and undegraded signals. In this study we trained great tits (Parus major L.) to discriminate between signal variants in two background types, a silent condition and a condition consisting of a natural dawn chorus. We manipulated great tit song types to simulate patterns of reverberation and degradation equivalent to transmission distances of between 5 and 160 m. The birds' responses were significantly affected by the differences between the signal variants and by background type. In contrast, stimulus familiarity or their element number had no significant effect on signal discrimination. Although background type was a significant main effect with respect to the response latencies, the great tits' overall performance in the noisy dawn chorus was similar to the performance in silence.

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Section: Echo Discrimination In Background Noisesupporting

confidence: 81%

Effects of signal features and background noise on distance cue discrimination by a songbird

Pohl

Klump

Langemann

2015

Journal of Experimental Biology

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“…Results from laboratory-based behavioral studies of great tits (Parus major) show that noisy conditions increase the detection threshold of biologically relevant frequencies by up to 18 dB and that urban noise favors detection of highfrequency songs (Pohl et al 2009(Pohl et al , 2012. Other experiments in great tits have shown that lowfrequency songs, which are most easily masked by noise pollution, are preferred by females and linked to reproductive success, and that female response latency to male songs within noise leads to alteration of male behavior (Halfwerk et al 2011(Halfwerk et al , 2012.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Anthropogenic noise weakens territorial response to intruder's songs

et al. 2016

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Abstract. Noise pollution degrades natural acoustic conditions, potentially interfering with bird communication. However, exactly how noise impacts the ability of the signal receiver to detect and discriminate vocalizations from conspecifics remains understudied in field settings. We performed a natural experiment to determine the effect of noise pollution on the territory-defense behaviors of two emberizid sparrows exposed to carefully constructed playbacks of conspecific intruder songs. Although all birds reacted to the playbacks, response latency increased with noise levels. This suggests that noise interferes with signal reception and may indicate impaired signal discrimination. We place these results in the context of a receiver's "listening area" and the significant impact of noise pollution on this receiver-centric perceptual acoustic range. This work informs conservation efforts and provides a much needed fieldbased examination of the disruptive impact of noise pollution on behaviors directly related to reproduction and fitness.

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“…Moreover, studying plasticity at the level of the individual, as a means to adapt quickly to varying environmental conditions, is of primary importance in the current context of ever-growing anthropogenic noise. While the vocal plasticity of the sender has been the subject of a number of recent studies (Francis et al, 2010;Nemeth et al, 2013;Warren et al, 2006), the receptor's perceptual plasticity has received much less attention (Pohl et al, 2012;Slabbekoorn, 2013). The present study emphasizes that the adaptation to adverse communication conditions may also involve ongoing learning at the receiver's level.…”

Section: Research Articlementioning

confidence: 75%

Learning to cope with degraded sounds: Female zebra finches can improve their expertise at discriminating between male voices at long distance

Mouterde

Elie

Theunissen

et al. 2014

Journal of Experimental Biology

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Reliable transmission of acoustic information about individual identity is of critical importance for pair bond maintenance in numerous monogamous songbirds. However, information transfer can be impaired by environmental constraints such as external noise or propagation-induced degradation. Birds have been shown to use several adaptive strategies to deal with difficult signal transmission contexts. Specifically, a number of studies have suggested that vocal plasticity at the emitter's level allows birds to counteract the deleterious effects of sound degradation. Although the communication process involves both the emitter and the receiver, perceptual plasticity at the receiver's level has received little attention. Here, we explored the reliability of individual recognition by female zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata), testing whether perceptual training can improve discrimination of degraded individual vocal signatures. We found that female zebra finches are proficient in discriminating between calls of individual males at long distances, and even more so when they can train themselves with increasingly degraded signals over time. In this latter context, females succeed in discriminating between males as far as 250 m. This result emphasizes that adaptation to adverse communication conditions may involve not only the emitter's vocal plasticity but also the receptor's decoding process through on-going learning.

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Great tits in urban noise benefit from high frequencies in song detection and discrimination

Cited by 70 publications

References 37 publications

Effects of signal features and background noise on distance cue discrimination by a songbird

Effects of signal features and background noise on distance cue discrimination by a songbird

Anthropogenic noise weakens territorial response to intruder's songs

Learning to cope with degraded sounds: Female zebra finches can improve their expertise at discriminating between male voices at long distance

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