A. Stumpner and O. von Helversen (1994). Song production and song recognition in a group of sibling grasshopper species (Chorthippus dorsatus, Ch. dichrous and Ch. loratus: Orthoptera, Acrididae). Bioacoustics 6(1): 1-23
Abstract
1. Chorthippus dorsatus, Ch. dichrous and Ch. loratus are closely related, sympatric grasshopper species (subfam. Gomphocerinae) with few morphological differences.
2. Songs of males contain two elements: pulsed syllables produced during synchronous movements of the hindlegs (part A) and ongoing noise produced during alternating movements of the hindlegs (part B). Part A predominates in songs of Ch. loratus and part B in songs of Ch. dichrous. In Ch. dorsatus both parts contribute nearly equally to the songs.
3. Ch. dichrous and Ch. loratus are Eastern species, while Ch. dorsatus occurs al1 over Europe including Spain and Italy. The songs of different populations of Ch. dorsatus in Europe are compared.
4. Female stridulation of the three species is similar to male stridulation.
5. Females prefer - expressed by their response songs - the conspecific signals over heterospecific ones. Discrimination, however, is not perfect.
6. Tested with artificial song models, females of the different species differ clearly in their response functions for element numbers in part A while Ch. dorsatus and Ch. dichrous females show nearly identical responses to varied durations of part B. Individuals of a Greek population with male song characteristics intermediate between Ch. dorsatus and Ch. dichrous show intermediate female response functions as well.
L. May (1994). Individually distinctive corncrake Crex crex calls: a pilot study. Bioacoustics 6(1): 25-32
Abstract
Male cornflakes Crex crex produce characteristic repetitive calls composed of two elements. Duration of each element, and the interval between elements and between calls, were measured for a single bird on three nights and for five birds on a single night. Element durations were similar on a1l three nights but interval durations differed between nights. Element durations differed between birds but some pairs of birds could not be separated using measures of element duration. Call elements are made up of pulses and the number of pulses differs between elements of a call.
J.P. Hailman (1994). Constrained permutation in "chick-a-dee"- like calls of a black-lored tit Parus xanthogenys. Bioacoustics 6(1): 33-50
Abstract
Combinatorial calls of tits (Parus) resemble language in allowing the production of a huge variety of distinct call types based on combinations of a few note types. This study found a constrained type of permuted order of note types, which enlarges the potential for call variety and even more closely resembles properties of language. Vocalizations of the black-lored tit P. xanthogenys of India have never been studied in the wild and were known previously only through brief mention in two comparative reviews (Thielcke 1968, Hailman 1989). A wild-caught captive gave chick-a-dee-like calls in response to a stuffed owl. The tit used combinations of four note types (denoted A through D) to create 65 different call types. Zipf-Mandelbrot analysis showed that the repertoire of call types has the language-like property of “openness”: as more calls are sampled, the number of call types represented in the sample continues to rise without bound. First-order Markov-chain analysis revealed that B, C and D notes tend to be isolated from one another, with A notes given between them, within strings of the same note-type, and at the beginning and ending of calls. This constrained permutation is missing from the merely combinatorial chick-a-dee calls of the black-capped chickadee P. atricapillus, where note-types occur in fixed order both within and among calls. Calling under constant stimulus conditions changed unidirectionally during the course of mobbing, with D notes first replacing B notes in calls and then also replacing C notes as time progressed. The evolution of note types and call structure is discussed in comparison with the black-capped chickadee.
M.Gogala (1995). Songs of four cicada species from Thailand. Bioacoustics 6(2): 101-116
Abstract
Main or calling songs of cicadas Meimuna tavoyana, Platylomia nagarasingna, Platylomia sp. and Purana aft. tigrina from Thailand are described and compared with some previously investigated species. For M. tavoyana a repeated tonal frequency modulated pattern is typical in addition to the broad band buzzing sound. Both closely related chorusing species of Platylomia show broad band acoustic emissions with some degree of frequency band modulation. The song of Purana aft. tigrina from S. Thailand is the most complex, with sharply tuned spectral components (at 2300 and 9400 Hz) and rich amplitude modulation patterns.
Y. Espmark (1995). Individual and local variations in the song of the snow bunting (Plectrophenax nivalis) on Spitzbergen. Bioacoustics 6(2): 117-133
Abstract
Variations in song pattern within and between individuals as well as between areas were investigated by analysing the song of 11 and 13 snow bunting Plectrophenax nivalis males at Logyearbyen and Ny Aalesund, respectively, on Spitsbergen (Svalbard).
Individually, each of the males, except one, had only one song type, and the number of figure types ranged between 3 and 11. The relative variability (CV) was below 16% for all the variables analysed in the song strophe (number of figures and figure types, figure diversity, duration, maximum, minimum and range of frequency). The males differed significantly in all the variables analysed, and when the two study areas were compared with regard to these variables, no differences were found except for longer song strophes and a tendency towards less song versatility in Ny Aalesund. Furthermore, more than 90% of the 125 identified figure types were specific to the areas, although the majority of them (70%) were specific to particular males. Most of the males had their own characteristic song type with no or only little overlap of figure types and motifs between individuals. However, a 'nucleus' of five males at Ny Aalesund tended to share songs to a greater extent than more distant males in the same area.
It is concluded that the stereotypic song of the snow bunting fits into the pattern described as characteristic of the song of most Emberizidae species. Furthermore, since it was more characteristic of snow buntings to have individual song patterns than to share songs, this study does not provide any strong support for the occurrence of local song dialects in this species.
B. Schottler (1995). Songs of blue tits Parus caeruleus palmensis from La Palma (Canary Islands) - a test of hypotheses. Bioacoustics 6(2): 135-152
Abstract
Parus major and Parus caeruleus palmensis have some song types in common. They consist of whistled element-types in different frequency ranges. Both species show territorial reactions to playback of the song-types belonging to the other species. P. c. palmensis does not share any song types with Central European Parus caeruleus. This is confirmed by playback experiments with the different song types, which do not elicit any territorial behaviour. The songs of P. c. palmensis also differ from those of blue tits from any other Canary Island. They may be derived from contact calls of the Lanzarote population. They have been developed by young birds that had not yet learnt their songs when they colonized La Palma from Lanzarote without reaching any of the other Canary Islands. It is suggested that the uniform song repertoire was developed by adapting the already learned contact calls to each other. The similarities to song types of P. major are due to convergence rather than character displacement. All other Canary Island tit populations share the main features of their songs, which are characterized by quick frequency changes. It seems most likely that these islands have been colonized by birds which had already learnt their songs. Differences in song repertoires are mainly caused by drift events which happen to occur because of population bottlenecks during the colonization process.
P.S.Lobel and D.A. Mann (1995). Spawning sounds of the damselfish, Dascyllus albisella (Pomacentridae), and relationship to male size. Bioacoustics 6(3): 187-198
Abstract
Synchronous audio-video recordings were made of free-living Dascyllus albisella on coral reefs at Johnston Atoll, Central Pacific Ocean. Males produced distinct and consistent sounds during courtship and mating. The courtship sound is a well-known feature of pomacentrid behavior, and is produced during the signal jump. Male D. albisella also produced a mating sound, which has not been previously described for any other pomacentrid. The mating sound is produced as the male quivers during spawning. The courtship sound differed from the mating sound by having a greater number of pulses (6±4 vs. 3±1, mean ±SD) and a longer duration (282±57 vs. 127±45 msec). The courtship sounds of larger males were lower in frequency than those of smaller males (r2=0.64, power regression). The median dominant frequency of small males (20 to 40 g) was 390 Hz (n=12 males), compared to 334 Hz (n=7 males) for large males (40 to 60 g).
Keywords: sound production, damselfish, Pomacentridae, Dascyllus albisella, spawning.
D.A. Mann and P.S. Lobel (1995). Passive acoustic detection of sounds produced by the damselfish, Dascyllus albisella (Pomacentridae). Bioacoustics 6(3): 199-213
Abstract
We developed and field-tested a passive acoustic detector that collects data on sound production by sonic fish. The detector was deployed to measure the timing of sound production by males of the damselfish Dascyllus albisella (Pomacentridae), at Johnston Atoll, Central Pacific Ocean. Sound production rates were higher during the reproductive season (April) than during the non-reproductive season (October). The highest rates of sound production occurred on the day before and day of egg-laying. Sound production rates decreased during brood care, and increased again after hatching. The correlation of sound-production rate with the spawning cycle provided a reliable acoustic signal that was monitored by the detector. This new technology provides a capability for obtaining detailed measurements of reproductive activity over long time periods. Multiple detectors can be used simultaneously to monitor reproduction over large spatial scales.
Keywords: passive acoustic detection, sound production, damselfish, Dascyllus albisella, dawn chorus.
M.C. Pessoa de Amorim (1996). Sound production in the blue-green damselfish Chromis viridis. Bioacoustics 6(4): 265-272
Abstract
Sound production is widespread in coral reef fish of the family Pomacentridae. As commonly found in other teleosts, damselfish emit calls in agonistic and courtship contexts. In this paper, evidence of sound production by the blue-green damselfish Chromis viridis is presented for the first time. The recorded sounds consisted of clicks produced during agonistic interactions.
Keywords: sound production, agonistic behaviour, Chromis, damselfish, Pomacentridae
B. Sur, J. Maciejok & H.-H. Bergmann (1996). Where to sing and where to call. Vocalizations of chaffinches Fringilla coelebs inside and outside their territories. Bioacoustics 6(4): 273-279
Abstract
The spatial distributions of chaffinch full song and some of the calls are described with regard to the territories. Full songs of five colour ringed and transmitter marked males occurred mainly inside and in a few cases outside the territories. These events are interpreted as attempts by the birds to enlarge their territories. Rain calls and courtship tchirp calls were restricted to the singing territories. The social chink call was frequently uttered outside the territories as a means of intra-pair communication.
Keywords: Chaffinch, Fringilla coelebs, song, call, territory