Classifying acoustic units is often a key step in studying repertoires and sequence structure in animal communication. Manual classification by eye and ear remains the primary method, but new tools and techniques are urgently needed to expedite the process for large, diverse datasets. Here we introduce Koe, an application for classifying and analysing animal vocalizations. Koe offers bulk‐labelling of units via interactive ordination plots and unit tables, as well as visualization and playback, segmentation, measurement, data filtering/exporting and new tools for analysing repertoire and sequence structure – in an integrated environment. We demonstrate Koe with a real‐world case study of New Zealand bellbird Anthornis melanura songs from an archipelago metapopulation. Having classified 21,500 units in Koe, we compare repertoires and sequence structure between sites and sexes. Koe is web‐based ( koe.io.ac.nz.) and easy to use, making it ideal for collaboration, education and citizen science. By enabling large‐scale, high‐resolution classification and analysis of animal vocalizations, Koe expands the possibilities for bioacoustics research.
In heterogeneous habitats, camouflage via background matching can be challenging because visual characteristics can vary dramatically across small spatial scales. Additionally, temporal variation in signaling functions of coloration can affect crypsis, especially when animals use coloration seasonally for intraspecific signaling (e.g., mate selection). We currently have a poor understanding of how wild prey optimize background matching within continuously heterogeneous habitats, and whether this is affected by requirements of intraspecific signaling across biological seasons. Here, we quantified color patterns of a wild population of shore skink (Oligosoma smithi), a variably colored lizard endemic to New Zealand, to (a) investigate whether background matching varies across a vegetation gradient; (b) assess potential signaling functions of color; and (c) to determine whether there is a trade‐off between requirements for crypsis and intraspecific signaling in coloration across seasons. Although all pattern types occurred throughout the vegetation gradient, we found evidence for background matching in skinks across the vegetation gradient, where dorsal brightness and pattern complexity corresponded with the proportion of vegetation cover. There was also a significant disparity between ventral color (saturation) of juveniles and adults, and also between sexes, suggestive of sex recognition. However, there was little indication that color was condition‐dependent in adults. Despite some evidence for a potential role in signaling, crypsis did not greatly differ across seasons. Our study suggests that selection favors a mix of generalist and specialist background matching strategies across continuously heterogeneous habitats.
The Fairy Tern Sternula nereis is an Australasian tern that breeds in Australia, New Caledonia and New Zealand, with the last having the smallest breeding population, listed as ‘Threatened – Nationally Critical’ by the New Zealand Department of Conservation. Here, we investigate the genetic relatedness and level of endemism (gene flow) of the New Zealand Fairy Tern S. n. davisae population compared with the larger breeding populations in Australia, S. n. nereis, and New Caledonia, S. n. exsul, using the NADH subunit 2 (ND2) region of the mitochondrial DNA. We found that the three main populations (n = 86) were genetically distinct, with a different fixed haplotype restricted to New Zealand (n = 15) and New Caledonia (n = 16), and that the estimated gene flow was low to zero, indicating no interbreeding between the populations. The current genetic evidence is consistent with observations of morphological and behavioural differences among the populations, and we suggest continued independent management of the population in New Zealand and further surveys and independent management of the New Caledonia population.
To determine the success of restoration programmes, knowledge of the temporal dynamics in community structure and processes is vital. The water quality and macroinvertebrate community structures of a newly created and an established pond within the same ecosystem were sampled bi-monthly over a year to monitor the development of the new pond. The water quality measures of the ponds were significantly different. Conductivity, salinity, and total dissolved solids levels were also different between the ponds. The colonisation of a macroinvertebrate community in the new pond was rapid, resulting in a 75% resemblance to the established pond by the end of the first year. The pond was colonised by non-insect taxa like Crustacea and Gastropod and then by insects. There was a significant difference in the macroinvertebrate communities of the ponds due to temporal taxonomic composition differences. The high abundance of Diplacodes spp. (perchers), Physa spp. (left-handed pond snail), and Ostracod (seed shrimp) in the new pond contributed to the difference in the community between the two ponds. Cladocera (water fleas) dominated the macroinvertebrate community, and the highest abundance was recorded in August for both ponds. Our results suggest that a newly created pond can have a comparable macroinvertebrate community to nearby established ponds within a year.
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