Signalling males increase or decrease their calling effort according to the proximity of rivals in a wild cricket

Communication takes place within a network of multiple signallers and receivers. Social network analysis provides tools to quantify how an individual’s social positioning affects group dynamics and the subsequent biological consequences. However, network analysis is rarely applied to animal communication, likely due to the logistical difficulties of monitoring natural communication networks. We generated a simulated communication network to investigate how variation in individual communication behaviours generates network effects, and how this communication network’s structure feeds back to affect future signalling interactions. We simulated competitive acoustic signalling interactions among chorusing individuals and varied several parameters related to communication and chorus size to examine their effects on calling output and social connections. Larger choruses had higher noise levels, and this reduced network density and altered the relationships between individual traits and communication network position. Hearing sensitivity interacted with chorus size to affect both individuals’ positions in the network and the acoustic output of the chorus. Physical proximity to competitors influenced signalling, but a distinctive communication network structure emerged when signal active space was limited. Our model raises novel predictions about communication networks that could be tested experimentally and identifies aspects of information processing in complex environments that remain to be investigated. This article is part of the theme issue ‘The power of sound: unravelling how acoustic communication shapes group dynamics’.

Section: (B) Network Effects On Individual Behaviourmentioning

confidence: 99%

Collective signalling is shaped by feedbacks between signaller variation, receiver perception and acoustic environment in a simulated communication network

Reichert,

Luttbeg,

Hobson

2024

“…While these approaches remain untested in songbird territorial networks, pairwise phase coherence associated with volume oscillations as a function of their spatial distances has been shown in cicadas [56], with spatial synchrony also found to be patchy in this example. Similarly, in field crickets Gryllus campestris, males were more likely to sing when there was an increased number of singing rivals, leading to moderate singing overlap, but singing was inhibited by close proximity [57]. Models of synchronization have also been applied to frog choruses [58].…”

Section: (B) Case Study 2: Synchronization In Vocal Signallingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Not your private tête-à-tête: leveraging the power of higher-order networks to study animal communication

Iacopini,

Foote,

Fefferman

et al. 2024

Animal communication is frequently studied with conventional network representations that link pairs of individuals who interact, for example, through vocalization. However, acoustic signals often have multiple simultaneous receivers, or receivers integrate information from multiple signallers, meaning these interactions are not dyadic. Additionally, non-dyadic social structures often shape an individual’s behavioural response to vocal communication. Recently, major advances have been made in the study of these non-dyadic, higher-order networks (e.g. hypergraphs and simplicial complexes). Here, we show how these approaches can provide new insights into vocal communication through three case studies that illustrate how higher-order network models can: (i) alter predictions made about the outcome of vocally coordinated group departures; (ii) generate different patterns of song synchronization from models that only include dyadic interactions; and (iii) inform models of cultural evolution of vocal communication. Together, our examples highlight the potential power of higher-order networks to study animal vocal communication. We then build on our case studies to identify key challenges in applying higher-order network approaches in this context and outline important research questions that these techniques could help answer. This article is part of the theme issue ‘The power of sound: unravelling how acoustic communication shapes group dynamics’.

“…Currently, most evidence of the use of sounds in reptiles has focussed largely on dyadic interactions, whereas in other vocal animals, such as frogs and crickets, their call strategies and properties can be affected by social environments (e.g. the number of males and females surrounding the callers [93]; or the proximity between them [94]). To date, there has only been a handful of studies of producing sounds in the group-living context in captive reptiles (i.e.…”

Section: (C) Social Complexity Hypothesis For Communicative Complexit...mentioning

confidence: 99%

Hidden social complexity behind vocal and acoustic communication in non-avian reptiles

Lin,

Godfrey

2024

Social interactions are inevitable in the lives of most animals, since most essential behaviours require interaction with conspecifics, such as mating and competing for resources. Non-avian reptiles are typically viewed as solitary animals that predominantly use their vision and olfaction to communicate with conspecifics. Nevertheless, in recent years, evidence is mounting that some reptiles can produce sounds and have the potential for acoustic communication. Reptiles that can produce sound have an additional communicative channel (in addition to visual/olfactory channels), which could suggest they have a higher communicative complexity, the evolution of which is assumed to be driven by the need of social interactions. Thus, acoustic reptiles may provide an opportunity to unveil the true social complexity of reptiles that are usually thought of as solitary. This review aims to reveal the hidden social interactions behind the use of sounds in non-avian reptiles. Our review suggests that the potential of vocal and acoustic communication and the complexity of social interactions may be underestimated in non-avian reptiles, and that acoustic reptiles may provide a great opportunity to uncover the coevolution between sociality and communication in non-avian reptiles. This article is part of the theme issue ‘The power of sound: unravelling how acoustic communication shapes group dynamics’.