Signalling adjustments to direct and indirect environmental effects on signal perception in meerkats

Toni, Pauline; Gall, Gabriella E. C.; Clutton‐Brock, Tim; Manser, Marta B.

doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0238313

Cited by 6 publications

(2 citation statements)

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“…For instance, before making group movements, communicating information about 'when to go' among members can allow individuals to coordinate departure times [6,7]; such coordination can reduce the risk of predation and enhance energetic efficiency by allowing individuals to avoid false starts. During activities such as foraging, communicating spatial information about their current positions can minimize the chance of individuals becoming separated from the group [8,9]. The same information can also help regulate spacing of potential foraging competitors, thereby reducing conflicts [8,10].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The relative contribution of acoustic signals versus movement cues in group coordination and collective decision-making

Liao,

Magrath,

Manser

et al. 2024

Phil. Trans. R. Soc. B

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To benefit from group living, individuals need to maintain cohesion and coordinate their activities. Effective communication thus becomes critical, facilitating rapid coordination of behaviours and reducing consensus costs when group members have differing needs and information. In many bird and mammal species, collective decisions rely on acoustic signals in some contexts but on movement cues in others. Yet, to date, there is no clear conceptual framework that predicts when decisions should evolve to be based on acoustic signals versus movement cues. Here, we first review how acoustic signals and movement cues are used for coordinating activities. We then outline how information masking, discrimination ability (Weber’s Law) and encoding limitations, as well as trade-offs between these, can identify which types of collective behaviours likely rely on acoustic signals or movement cues. Specifically, our framework proposes that behaviours involving the timing of events or expression of specific actions should rely more on acoustic signals, whereas decisions involving complex choices with multiple options (e.g. direction and destination) should generally use movement cues because sounds are more vulnerable to information masking and Weber’s Law effects. We then discuss potential future avenues of enquiry, including multimodal communication and collective decision-making by mixed-species animal groups. This article is part of the theme issue ‘The power of sound: unravelling how acoustic communication shapes group dynamic’.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The relative contribution of acoustic signals versus movement cues in group coordination and collective decision-making

Liao,

Magrath,

Manser

et al. 2024

Phil. Trans. R. Soc. B

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…For instance, before making group movements, communicating information about 'when to go' among members can allow individuals to coordinate departure times [6,7]; such coordination can reduce the risk of predation and enhance energetic efficiency by allowing individuals to avoid false starts. During activities, such as foraging, communicating spatial information about the current positions can minimize the chance of an individual becoming separated from the group [8,9]. The same information can also help regulate spacing of potential foraging competitors, thereby reducing conflicts [8,10].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The relative contribution of acoustic signals versus movement cues in group coordination and collective decision-making

Liao,

Magrath,

Manser

et al. 2024

Preprint

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

To benefit from group living, individuals need to maintain cohesion and coordinate their activities. Effective communication thus becomes critical, facilitating rapid coordination of behaviours and reducing consensus costs when group members have differing needs and information. In many bird and mammal species, collective decisions rely on acoustic signals in some contexts but on movement cues in others. Yet, to date there is no clear conceptual framework that predicts when decisions should evolve to be based on acoustic signals versus movement cues. Here, we first review how acoustic signals and movement cues are used for coordinating activities. We then outline how information masking, discrimination ability (Weber’s Law), and encoding limitations, as well as trade-offs between these, can identify which types of collective behaviours likely rely on acoustic signals or movement cues. Specifically, our framework proposes that behaviours involving the timing of events or expression of specific actions should rely more on acoustic signals, whereas decisions involving complex choices with multiple options (e.g. direction, destination) should generally use movement cues because sounds are more vulnerable to information masking and Weber’s Law effects. We then discuss potential future avenues, including multimodal communication and collective decision-making by mixed-species animal groups.

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The role of neighbour proximity and context on meerkat close call acoustic structure

Driscoll,

Briefer,

Manser

2024

Animal Behaviour

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Signalling adjustments to direct and indirect environmental effects on signal perception in meerkats

Cited by 6 publications

References 50 publications

The relative contribution of acoustic signals versus movement cues in group coordination and collective decision-making

The relative contribution of acoustic signals versus movement cues in group coordination and collective decision-making

The relative contribution of acoustic signals versus movement cues in group coordination and collective decision-making

The role of neighbour proximity and context on meerkat close call acoustic structure

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