Strategies that facilitate or counter eavesdropping on vocal interactions in songbirds

Dabelsteen, Torben

doi:10.1590/s0001-37652004000200014

Cited by 12 publications

(13 citation statements)

References 19 publications

(16 reference statements)

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“…The strong response of lions presented with playback of wild dog calls suggests there is significant pressure for wild dogs to avoid detection. Dabelsteen (2004) discusses how the potential costs of eavesdropping might be predicted to generate strategies (e.g. minimizing the duration and amplitude of calls, utilizing signals that are high frequency and highly modulated) to limit the distance over which callers might be eavesdropped upon.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Eavesdropping and Risk Assessment Between Lions, Spotted Hyenas and African Wild Dogs

Webster¹,

McNutt²,

McComb³

2010

Ethology

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Vocalizing allows rapid transmission of detailed information beyond line of sight. However, the risk of eavesdropping by unintended receivers means there is also a potential cost to any vocalization. For fugitive species such as African wild dogs the potential cost of attracting dangerous competitors as eavesdroppers is especially significant. Experiments presented here demonstrate that eavesdropping lions Panthera leo were highly motivated to approach playbacks of wild dog Lycaon pictus vocalizations. As lions will kill any wild dogs they can catch, wild dogs risk paying high costs should their calls be detected. Lions were less likely to approach playbacks of spotted hyena Crocuta crocuta whoops, with responses split according to gender: male lions remained quick to approach hyena whoops, but females without accompanying males typically did not approach. Although hyenas seemed at least as capable as lions of detecting playbacks of wild dog calls, they were significantly less likely to subsequently approach them. Analogous to female lions faced with hyenas, the reluctance of hyenas to approach wild dogs may well derive from an assessment of the potential risks involved. We consider the hypothesis that wild dog twitters display counter‐adaptations against eavesdropping, but suggest that this species may best limit the risk of detection by avoiding areas where they are most likely to be overheard by lions.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Eavesdropping and Risk Assessment Between Lions, Spotted Hyenas and African Wild Dogs

Webster¹,

McNutt²,

McComb³

2010

Ethology

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“…As noted earlier, the SN approach can provide metrics to characterize the SNS of these communication networks. In turn, the SNS (e.g., pattern of who gains information from whom), and associated benefits and costs should influence the evolution of communication strategies (Dabelsteen 2004). …”

Section: Social Learning and Information Flowmentioning

confidence: 99%

Social network theory: new insights and issues for behavioral ecologists

Sih

Hanser

McHugh

2009

Behav Ecol Sociobiol

327

271

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Until recently, few studies have used social network theory (SNT) and metrics to examine how social network structure (SNS) might influence social behavior and social dynamics in non-human animals. Here, we present an overview of why and how the social network approach might be useful for behavioral ecology. We first note four important aspects of SNS that are commonly observed, but relatively rarely quantified: (1) that within a social group, differences among individuals in their social experiences and connections affect individual and group outcomes; (2) that indirect connections can be important (e.g., partners of your partners matter); (3) that individuals differ in their importance in the social network (some can be considered keystone individuals); and (4) that social network traits often carry over across contexts (e.g., SN position in male-male competition can influence later male mating success). We then discuss how these four points, and the social network approach in general, can yield new insights and questions for a broad range of issues in behavioral ecology including: mate choice, alternative mating tactics, male-male competition, cooperation, reciprocal altruism, eavesdropping, kin selection, dominance hierarchies, social learning, information flow, social foraging, and cooperative antipredator behavior. Finally, we suggest future directions including: (1) integrating behavioral syndromes and SNT; (2) comparing space use and SNS; (3) adaptive partner choice and SNS; (4) the dynamics and stability (or instability) of social networks, and (5) group selection shaping SNS.

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“…Adaptive strategies can be identified for both emitters and receivers (see also Dabelsteen 2004). From the emitter's point of view an adaptive strategy includes signaling behavior that takes into account both the physical heterogeneities of the forest environment and the temporal variations of the acoustic constraints in order to control the active space of signaling.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The aim of this paper is to briefly review the different strategies used by birds to manage with these constraints (see also Dabelsteen 2004).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Are communication activities shaped by environmental constraints in reverberating and absorbing forest habitats?

Manthevon

Aubin

Dabelsteen

et al. 2004

An. Acad. Bras. Ciênc.

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In the dense vegetation of temperate or tropical forests, communication processes are constrained by propagation-induced modifications of the transmitted sounds. The presence of leaves, trunks and branches induces important sound reverberation and absorption leading to diminution of the signal energy as well as qualitative modifications. The aim of this paper is to briefly review the different strategies used by birds to manage with these constraints. At the emitter's level, an adapted emission behavior which takes into account both the physical heterogeneities of the forest environment and the temporal variations of the acoustic constraints, is especially useful to control the active space of signaling. The coding of information into acoustic parameters that have different susceptibility to propagation constraints is also of great interest. At the receiver's level, an adaptive reception behavior (listening post) and a great tolerance to sound degradation during the decoding process are the keys to an optimal communication process.

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Strategies that facilitate or counter eavesdropping on vocal interactions in songbirds

Cited by 12 publications

References 19 publications

Eavesdropping and Risk Assessment Between Lions, Spotted Hyenas and African Wild Dogs

Eavesdropping and Risk Assessment Between Lions, Spotted Hyenas and African Wild Dogs

Social network theory: new insights and issues for behavioral ecologists

Are communication activities shaped by environmental constraints in reverberating and absorbing forest habitats?

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