Deep croaks and fighting assessment in toads Bufo bufo

Davies, N. B.; Halliday, Tim

doi:10.1038/274683a0

Cited by 533 publications

(272 citation statements)

References 12 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

256

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…In male cricket frogs (Acris crepitans), both the spectral and temporal call parameters are biomechanically related to laryngeal size which is, in turn, largely determined by body size (Mcclelland et al, 1996). These results support the idea that the call characters of anuran males can provide information about body size which would enhance the ability of males to evaluate an opponent's fighting ability (Arak, 1983;Bee et al, 1999;Davies and Halliday, 1978;Given, 1987;Ramer et al, 1983;Robertson, 1986;Wagner, 1989) and the ability of females to evaluate the potential mate's quality on the basis of the acoustic features of male communication signals (Morris and Yoon, 1989 during interactions with other males (Bee and Perrill, 1996;Bee et al, 1999;Given, 1999;Howard and Young, 1998;Lopez et al, 1988;Wagner, 1989Wagner, , 1992 or alter the spectral properties of their acoustic signals by exploiting the resonant properties of the tree hole or burrow they inhabit (Lardner and bin Lakim, 2002;Cui et al, 2012). Future work using playback experiments would be required to determine if male R. dennysi can alter the spectral properties of calls.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 79%

Effects of Body Size and Environmental Factors on the Acoustic Structure and Temporal Rhythm of Calls inRhacophorus dennysi

Wang¹,

Cui²,

Haitao³

et al. 2012

AHR

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 79%

Effects of Body Size and Environmental Factors on the Acoustic Structure and Temporal Rhythm of Calls inRhacophorus dennysi

Wang¹,

Cui²,

Haitao³

et al. 2012

AHR

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

“…Vocal characteristics can also predict body size, such as the temporal components of the aggressive song of house crickets (Acheta domesticus), the fundamental frequency of male toad calls (Bufo bufo) and the formant dispersion of domestic dog growls (Canis familiaris). Because larger body size is advantageous in aggressive encounters, male receivers can use information in vocal signals to assess opponents [7][8][9], and female receivers can use vocal qualities to choose mates that are genetically and physically superior [10 -12].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Sounds like a winner: voice pitch influences perception of leadership capacity in both men and women

2012

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

It is well known that non-human animals respond to information encoded in vocal signals, and the same can be said of humans. Specifically, human voice pitch affects how speakers are perceived. As such, does voice pitch affect how we perceive and select our leaders? To answer this question, we recorded men and women saying 'I urge you to vote for me this November'. Each recording was manipulated digitally to yield a higher-and lower-pitched version of the original. We then asked men and women to vote for either the lower-or higher-pitched version of each voice. Our results show that both men and women select male and female leaders with lower voices. These findings suggest that men and women with lower-pitched voices may be more successful in obtaining positions of leadership. This might also suggest that because women, on average, have higher-pitched voices than men, voice pitch could be a factor that contributes to fewer women holding leadership roles than men. Additionally, while people are free to choose their leaders, these results clearly demonstrate that these choices cannot be understood in isolation from biological influences.

show abstract

“…Male toads often call in localized groups, and rival males wrestle for mating access (Bowcock et al 2008) as described for B. bufo ( Davies & Halliday 1978). In bufonids, the amorous attention of multiple males can drown females (Davies & Halliday 1979;Wells 2007), and size mismatches between males and females reduce fertilization success (Davies & Halliday 1977), so both natural and sexual selection may favour female toads able to dislodge unwanted males.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Turgid female toads give males the slip: a new mechanism of female mate choice in the Anura

2010

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

In many anuran species, males vocalize to attract females but will grasp any female that comes within reach and retain their hold unless displaced by a rival male. Thus, female anurans may face strong selection to repel unwanted suitors, but no mechanism is known for doing so. We suggest that a defensive trait (the ability to inflate the body to ward off attack) has been co-opted for this role: by inflating their bodies, females are more difficult for males to grasp and hence, it is easier for another male to displace an already amplexed rival. Inflating a model female cane toad ( Bufo marinus ) strongly reduced a male's ability to maintain amplexus; and females who were experimentally prevented from inflating their bodies experienced no successful takeovers from rival males, in contrast to control females. Thus, the ability of a female cane toad to inflate her body may allow her to manipulate the outcome of male–male competition. This overlooked mechanism of anuran mate choice may reflect a common evolutionary pattern, whereby females co-opt defensive traits for use in sexual selection.

show abstract

Deep croaks and fighting assessment in toads Bufo bufo

Cited by 533 publications

References 12 publications

Effects of Body Size and Environmental Factors on the Acoustic Structure and Temporal Rhythm of Calls inRhacophorus dennysi

Effects of Body Size and Environmental Factors on the Acoustic Structure and Temporal Rhythm of Calls inRhacophorus dennysi

Sounds like a winner: voice pitch influences perception of leadership capacity in both men and women

Turgid female toads give males the slip: a new mechanism of female mate choice in the Anura

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About