Vocal Interactions in Birds: The Use of Song as a Model in Communication

Todt, Dietmar; Naguib, Marc

doi:10.1016/s0065-3454(08)60107-2

Cited by 239 publications

(208 citation statements)

References 135 publications

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“…Similar roles for the pattern of song use during interactions have been shown in European robins (Erithacus rubecula; Dabelsteen et al 1997) and nightingales (Hultsch & Todt 1982;Naguib et al 1999). Great tits of both sexes are able to recognize individual singers based on vocal characteristics (McGregor & Avery 1986;Weary & Krebs 1992;Lind et al 1996); thus, we expect subjects to be able to associate the roles of the interactants with the identities of the singers.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 66%

Male great tits eavesdrop on simulated male–to–male vocal interactions

Peake

Terry

McGregor

et al. 2001

Proc. R. Soc. Lond. B

157

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Animal communication generally occurs in the environment of a network of several potential signallers and receivers. Within a network environment, it is possible to gain relative information about conspeci¢cs by eavesdropping on signalling interactions. We presented male great tits with the opportunity to gain such information by simulating singing interactions using two loudspeakers. Interactions were presented so that relevant information was not available in the absolute singing behaviour of either individual, only in the relative timing of their songs in the interaction as a whole. We then assayed the information extracted by focal males by subsequently introducing one of the`interactants' (i.e. loudspeakers) into the territory of the focal male. Focal males responded with a reduced song output to males that had just`lost' an interaction. Focal males did not respond signi¢cantly di¡erently to`winners' as compared with intruders recently involved in an interaction that contained no consistent information. Focal males also responded by switching song types more often when encountering males that had recently been involved in a low-intensity interaction. These results provide the clearest evidence yet that male songbirds extract information from signal interactions between conspeci¢cs in the ¢eld.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 66%

Male great tits eavesdrop on simulated male–to–male vocal interactions

Peake

Terry

McGregor

et al. 2001

Proc. R. Soc. Lond. B

157

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“…Some species use timing of singing and patterns of song type switching relative to their opponent as a signal (for a good review of timing-based signals, see Todt & Naguib, 2000). Black-capped chickadees can vary the pitch of their fee-bee songs and use this ability in conjunction with overlapping to signal dominance (Otter et al, 2002 …”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

The social interaction role of song in song sparrows: implications for signal design

Burt¹,

Beecher²

2008

CCBR

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Many territorial songbirds use singing as an interactive social signal to reduce inter-neighbor aggression. Communication theory predicts that territorial songbirds may use repertoires of signals to indicate graded levels of aggressive motivation. This theory is supported in song sparrows, a species that uses several different song-based signals such as song-type matching to escalate or de-escalate aggression during counter-singing interactions. However, birds cannot type match if they do not share the song type their rival is singing, raising the question of how they might signal aggression instead. We present evidence for two alternative signaling strategies that non-sharing neighbors could use to communicate aggressive motivation. In the first case, a bird may 'similarity match' a rival's song by singing the most similar song in his repertoire, even if he cannot type match. Another solution would be for neighbors to agree to treat specific pairs of non-similar types as matches by convention. The conventional match is potentially a new class of signal that territorial neighbors may use along with type and similarity matching to maintain a repertoire of aggressive motivation signals.

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“…It is becoming apparent that the challenge males provide to each other is not just in what they sing, how much and how loudly, but in the way in which songs relate in time to each other, alternating or overlapping (e.g. Todt & Naguib 2000).…”

Section: Song and Interactionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Fifty years of bird song research: a case study in animal behaviour

Slater

2003

Animal Behaviour

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Vocal Interactions in Birds: The Use of Song as a Model in Communication

Cited by 239 publications

References 135 publications

Male great tits eavesdrop on simulated male–to–male vocal interactions

Male great tits eavesdrop on simulated male–to–male vocal interactions

The social interaction role of song in song sparrows: implications for signal design

Fifty years of bird song research: a case study in animal behaviour

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