Singing for Your Supper: Acoustical Luring of Avian Prey by Northern Shrikes

Atkinson, Eric C.

doi:10.2307/1370239

Cited by 13 publications

(14 citation statements)

References 10 publications

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“…Furthermore, responding to distress calls may be dangerous. For example, Atkinson (1997) found evidence that Northern Shrikes (Laniw excubitor) may lure prey by incorporating distress and alarm calls of different prey species into their songs.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Distress Calls of Birds in a Neotropical Cloud Forest¹

Neudorf

Sealy

2002

Biotropica

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Distress calls are loud, harsh calls given by some species of birds when they are captured by a predator or handled by humans. We recorded the frequency of distress calls and struggling behavior in 40 species of birds captured in mist nets during the dry season in a Costa Rica cloud forest. We tested the following hypotheses proposed to explain the function of distress calls: (1) calling for help from kin or reciprocal altruists; (2) warning kin; (3) eliciting mobbing behavior; (4) startling the predator; and (5) distracting the predator through attraction of additional predators. Our results did not support the calling‐for‐help, warning kin, or mobbing hypotheses. Indeed, genera that regularly occurred with kin or in flocks were not more likely to call than non‐flocking genera. There was no relationship between calling frequency and struggling behavior as predicted by the predator startle hypothesis. Genera of larger birds tended to call more than smaller birds, providing some support for both the predator distraction hypothesis and predator startle hypotheses. Calls of higher amplitude may be more effective in startling the predator. Distress calls of larger birds may also travel greater distances than those of smaller birds, supporting the predator manipulation hypothesis, but this requires further testing.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Distress Calls of Birds in a Neotropical Cloud Forest¹

Neudorf

Sealy

2002

Biotropica

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“…Avian mimics could use mimicry to lure avian prey (reviewed in Pollard, 1930;Armstrong, 1973;Baylis, 1982), although evidence is limited to one experiment on the northern shrike, Lanius excubitor (Atkinson, 1997). Avian mimics could use mimicry to lure avian prey (reviewed in Pollard, 1930;Armstrong, 1973;Baylis, 1982), although evidence is limited to one experiment on the northern shrike, Lanius excubitor (Atkinson, 1997).…”

Section: (C) Foragingmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…( ii ) Luring prey. Avian mimics could use mimicry to lure avian prey (reviewed in Pollard, 1930;Armstrong, 1973;Baylis, 1982), although evidence is limited to one experiment on the northern shrike, Lanius excubitor (Atkinson, 1997). Broadcasting northern shrike song in its entirety, which apparently includes heterospecific imitations, attracted more small passerines than either a blank tape or a control song from an American robin, Turdus migrutorius.…”

Section: (C) Foragingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Avian vocal mimicry: a unified conceptual framework

et al. 2014

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Mimicry is a classical example of adaptive signal design. Here, we review the current state of research into vocal mimicry in birds. Avian vocal mimicry is a conspicuous and often spectacular form of animal communication, occurring in many distantly related species. However, the proximate and ultimate causes of vocal mimicry are poorly understood. In the first part of this review, we argue that progress has been impeded by conceptual confusion over what constitutes vocal mimicry. We propose a modified version of Vane-Wright's (1980) widely used definition of mimicry. According to our definition, a vocalisation is mimetic if the behaviour of the receiver changes after perceiving the acoustic resemblance between the mimic and the model, and the behavioural change confers a selective advantage on the mimic. Mimicry is therefore specifically a functional concept where the resemblance between heterospecific sounds is a target of selection. It is distinct from other forms of vocal resemblance including those that are the result of chance or common ancestry, and those that have emerged as a by-product of other processes such as ecological convergence and selection for large song-type repertoires. Thus, our definition provides a general and functionally coherent framework for determining what constitutes vocal mimicry, and takes account of the diversity of vocalisations that incorporate heterospecific sounds. In the second part we assess and revise hypotheses for the evolution of avian vocal mimicry in the light of our new definition. Most of the current evidence is anecdotal, but the diverse contexts and acoustic structures of putative vocal mimicry suggest that mimicry has multiple functions across and within species. There is strong experimental evidence that vocal mimicry can be deceptive, and can facilitate parasitic interactions. There is also increasing support for the use of vocal mimicry in predator defence, although the mechanisms are unclear. Less progress has been made in explaining why many birds incorporate heterospecific sounds into their sexual displays, and in determining whether these vocalisations are functionally mimetic or by-products of sexual selection for other traits such as repertoire size. Overall, this discussion reveals a more central role for vocal mimicry in the behavioural ecology of birds than has previously been appreciated. The final part of this review identifies important areas for future research. Detailed empirical data are needed on individual species, including on the structure of mimetic signals, the contexts in which mimicry is produced, how mimicry is acquired, and the ecological relationships between mimic, model and receiver. At present, there is little information and no consensus about the various costs of vocal mimicry for the protagonists in the mimicry complex. The diversity and complexity of vocal mimicry in birds raises important questions for the study of animal communication and challenges our view of the nature of mimicry itself. Therefore, a better understanding of...

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“…Male song plays an important role in establishing and defending territories in numerous song-learning birds (Krebs et al 1978;Morse 1980;Beecher et al 1994;Atkinson 1997;Gil and Gahr 2002). In many of these species, males with higher vocalization rates (Alatalo et al 1990) and with a higher number of elements in their songs (Kipper et al 2006) establish their territories and pair with females sooner than males with lower quality songs.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Characteristics of male Spot-bellied Bobwhite (Colinus leucopogon) song during territory establishment

Sandoval

Barrantes

2011

J Ornithol

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In song-learning birds, male song shows a large inter-individual variation that frequently plays an important role in intra-and inter-sexual selection. In other bird groups, such as Galliformes, song learning is absent, and inter-individual song variation is small and expected to play a minor, if any, role in sexual contexts. In the Spot-bellied Bobwhite (Colinus leucopogon) we found that many males have a unique set of song features, and our results suggest that female mate choice in this species is based in part on male song traits. Most paired males in our study had longer songs. In addition, these males established territories in the middle of the breeding season, soon after the onset of the rainy season when increases in herbaceous cover and food resources would likely increase offspring and adult survival.

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Singing for Your Supper: Acoustical Luring of Avian Prey by Northern Shrikes

Cited by 13 publications

References 10 publications

Distress Calls of Birds in a Neotropical Cloud Forest¹

Distress Calls of Birds in a Neotropical Cloud Forest¹

Avian vocal mimicry: a unified conceptual framework

Characteristics of male Spot-bellied Bobwhite (Colinus leucopogon) song during territory establishment

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Singing for Your Supper: Acoustical Luring of Avian Prey by Northern Shrikes

Cited by 13 publications

References 10 publications

Distress Calls of Birds in a Neotropical Cloud Forest1

Distress Calls of Birds in a Neotropical Cloud Forest1

Avian vocal mimicry: a unified conceptual framework

Characteristics of male Spot-bellied Bobwhite (Colinus leucopogon) song during territory establishment

Contact Info

Product

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Distress Calls of Birds in a Neotropical Cloud Forest¹

Distress Calls of Birds in a Neotropical Cloud Forest¹