Characteristics of ultrasonic vocalizations emitted by rats during shock-elicited aggression

Ghiselli, William B.; LaRiviere, Conrad

doi:10.3758/bf03214078

Cited by 15 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 12 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…In pattern, the vocalizations that occur during aggression resemble a human fricative speech sound that contains dominant frequencies imbedded in wide-spectrum noise (Ghiselli & LaRiviere, 1977). The reliable detection of these complex vocalizations is facilitated by the dual-channel PLL.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Murine vocalizations: Experimental validation of a novel detector

Clarke

Smith

Justesen

et al. 1984

Behavior Research Methods, Instruments, & Computers

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

A new deviceto detect vocalizations by miceor rats is described. Ofmodest cost and incorporating integrated circuits and controls that permit rapid setting ofcenter frequency and sensitivity, the deviceis based on phase-lockedtone decodingand can operate at sonic or ultrasonic frequencies. Circuit operation and schematics are provided,as are data from two studies of mice in which reliable discrimination ofdistress and submissioncalls from background noise was demonstrated.Aggressive behaviorby murine species is accompanied by vocalizations, somewithinand somebeyondthe range of human hearing (see, e.g., Morgret, 1972;Morgret & Dengerink, 1972). Ultimately, independent visual observation by human observers must validate the occurrence of fighting, dominance, submission, and the like, but detection by electronic means of sonic signals that are associatedwith specificbehaviors has obvious advantages: Labor costs are reduced, and monitoring of behaviormay take place over long periods of time without human supervision. Existing electronic detectors are generally plagued by two problems (butsee the elaborate, computerbased system of Paranjape, Secord, & Voss, 1983): Discrimination between aggression calls and background noiseis often faulty, and selectivity across the sonic spectrum is often poor, which results in inadequatedifferentiationof behavior-specific vocalizations. In this paper we describe a relatively inexpensive, prototypal apparatus with greater flexibility, selectivity, and noise-rejection capability than most of its predecessors.All the simple squeal-squeak detectors 439componentvalues must be changedin precise mathematical ratio to shift the center frequency (f o ) while retaining good off-frequency rejection. The bandwidth (BW) of the Twin-Tis a functionof how nearly these six components approximate the mathematical ideal. If the BW is too broad, the device is susceptible to spurious triggering. Furthermore, there is no simple method, without external circuitry, of alteringdelay-that is, the number of cycles at a frequency withinthe BW that are needed to trigger the device. This problem could be resolved by a strategy employed by Paranjape et al. (1983), who deviseda wideband, digital, ultrasound recorder. However, the highcost of thisdevice wouldmakeit beyond the reach of many investigators.We have developed a squeal detector based on the phase-locked-loop (PLL) principle. This squeal detector may be adjusted over a considerable range of frequencies by a single control. Additional features of the PLL detector (basedon the IC-567) includebetter rejectionof out-of-band noise and directly adjustable BW, delay, and sensitivity (see Signetics Corporation, 1974). The PLL rodent-squeal detector evolved from the insight that the problem of detecting these vocalizations is analogous to that found in telephone systems that utilize touch-tone dialing: that is, tone decoding. CIRCUIT DESIGN AND OPERATIONThe circuit diagram of the squeal detector is shown in Figure 1. The two IC-567sare PLL tone decoders. Their f...

show abstract

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Murine vocalizations: Experimental validation of a novel detector

Clarke

Smith

Justesen

et al. 1984

Behavior Research Methods, Instruments, & Computers

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…While some authors (Sewell, 1970;Sales, 1972a;Sales & Pye, 1974;Brown, 1976;Ghiselli & LaRiviere, 1977) have published sonagrams of these calls, detailed quantitative descriptions of the structure of these calls apparently have not been published. Rather than examining the structure of the calls, most researchers have simply used a hetero-27-2 dyne receiver tuned to a narrow frequency band to detect the rate of occurrence of the vocalizations.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

United States Air Force Summer Research Program - 1991. Summer Faculty Research Program (SFRP) Reports. Volume 2. Armstrong Laboratory, Wilford Hall Medical Center

Moore¹,

Crittenden²,

Duncan³

et al. 1991

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The topography of aggressive behavior of an attacking rat is determined by the behavior of the victim

Sbordone

Elliott

1978

Aggr. Behav.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Untreated rats were observed to either bite or box with Pentobarbital‐treated opponents in a shockelicited aggression situation. Specific behaviors such as ataxia movements and submissive postures immediately preceded biting attacks, but rarely boxing whereas behaviors such as moving around the chamber and upright threat postures immediately preceded boxing attacks, but rarely biting. These data suggest that the topography of aggressive behavior of an attacking rat is determined by the behavior of the victim.

show abstract

Characteristics of ultrasonic vocalizations emitted by rats during shock-elicited aggression

Cited by 15 publications

References 12 publications

Murine vocalizations: Experimental validation of a novel detector

Murine vocalizations: Experimental validation of a novel detector

United States Air Force Summer Research Program - 1991. Summer Faculty Research Program (SFRP) Reports. Volume 2. Armstrong Laboratory, Wilford Hall Medical Center

The topography of aggressive behavior of an attacking rat is determined by the behavior of the victim

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About