Songs of American Redstarts <i>(Setophaga ruticilla)</i>: Sequencing Rules and their Relationships to Repertoire Size

Lemon, Robert E.; Dobson, Charles; Clifton, Peter G.

doi:10.1111/j.1439-0310.1993.tb00989.x

Cited by 22 publications

(10 citation statements)

References 23 publications

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“…The temporal structure of animal communication signals, including starling song (Gentner & Hulse, 1998), can be described in terms of finite state automata (Chatfield & Lemon, 1970; Dobson & Lemon, 1978; Lemon & Chatfield, 1971; Lemon & Chatfield, 1973; Lemon, Dobson, & Clifton, 1993; c.f. Suzuki, Buck, & Tyack, 2006).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Working memory for patterned sequences of auditory objects in a songbird

Comins

Gentner

2010

Cognition

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The capacity to remember sequences is critical to many behaviors, such as navigation and communication. Adult humans readily recall the serial order of auditory items, and this ability is commonly understood to support, in part, the speech processing for language comprehension. Theories of short-term serial recall posit either use of absolute (hierarchically structured) or relative (associatively structured) position information. To date, neither of these classes of theories has been tested in a comparative auditory model. European starlings, a species of songbird, use temporally structured acoustic signals to communicate, and thus have the potential to serve as a model system for auditory working memory. Here, we explore the strategies that starlings use to detect the serial order of ecologically valid acoustic communication signals and the limits on their capacities to do so. Using a two-alternative choice operant procedure, we demonstrate that starlings can attend to the serial ordering of at least four song elements (motifs) and can use this information to classify differently ordered sequences of motifs. Removing absolute position cues from sequences while leaving relative position cues intact, causes recognition to fail. We then show that starlings can, however, recognize motif sequences using only relative position cues, but only under rigid circumstances. The data are consistent with a strong learning bias against relative position information, and suggest that recognition of structured vocal signals in this species is inherently hierarchical.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Working memory for patterned sequences of auditory objects in a songbird

Comins

Gentner

2010

Cognition

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“…Songbirds, in their own ways, build complex vocal forms from elementary units known as syllables. Among the 4500+ species of songbirds, simple and complex songs can be found, and a rich history of detailed song descriptions can be found across a wide variety of literature [4]–[12]. However, quantitative information about the statistical complexity of song is available only for a few species [4], [8]–[12].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In some cases, e.g. with Western Meadowlarks and American Redstarts, the probability of producing a given song type decreases after the first time it is delivered in a bout of singing, and as a result, the full repertoire of songs is expressed more frequently than expected if the selection of songs was random [4], [12]. In a related example of song performance memory, nightingales can pause for a few seconds, and then resume singing where they left off in a ordered set of songs [20].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Long-range Order in Canary Song

et al. 2013

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Bird songs range in form from the simple notes of a Chipping Sparrow to the rich performance of the nightingale. Non-adjacent correlations can be found in the syntax of some birdsongs, indicating that the choice of what to sing next is determined not only by the current syllable, but also by previous syllables sung. Here we examine the song of the domesticated canary, a complex singer whose song consists of syllables, grouped into phrases that are arranged in flexible sequences. Phrases are defined by a fundamental time-scale that is independent of the underlying syllable duration. We show that the ordering of phrases is governed by long-range rules: the choice of what phrase to sing next in a given context depends on the history of the song, and for some syllables, highly specific rules produce correlations in song over timescales of up to ten seconds. The neural basis of these long-range correlations may provide insight into how complex behaviors are assembled from more elementary, stereotyped modules.

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“…Note order complexity was measured as the entropy of a first‐order Markov model, which estimates the syntactical complexity of note orders. This model was originally developed in information theory, but is gaining popularity in studies of songs sung by Bengalese finch (Nakamura and Okanoya , Soma et al ) and other songbirds (American redstart Setophaga ruticilla : Lemon et al , European starling Sturnus vulgaris : Gentner and Hulse ). The index will be larger if the note‐to‐note transition is more versatile (i.e.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Age‐dependent song changes in a closed‐ended vocal learner: elevation of song performance after song crystallization

Ota

Soma

2014

Journal of Avian Biology

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Birdsong is a sexual signal that serves as an indicator of male quality. There is already abundant evidence that song elaboration reflects early life-history because early developmental stress affects neural development of song control systems, and leaves irreversible adverse effects on song phenotypes.Especially in closed-ended vocal learners, song features crystallized early in life are less subject to changes in adulthood. This is why less attention has been paid to lifelong song changes in closed-ended learners. However, in the eyes of female birds that gain benefits from choosing mates based on male songs, not only past but also current conditions encoded in songs would be meaningful, given that even crystallized songs in closed-ended learners would not be identical in the long term. In this study, we examine within-individual song changes in the Java sparrow Lonchura oryzivora, with the aim of shedding light on the relationship between song and long-term life history. Specifically, we compared song length, tempo, and song complexity measures between the point just after song crystallization and around 1 year later, and also compared those traits between fathers and sons to clarify the effect of vocal learning. While it is not surprising that song complexity did not differ depending on age or between fathers and sons, we found that song length and tempo increased with age. Follow-up analyses have revealed that frequency bandwidth and peak frequency of song notes also elevated with age. Our results show that song performance related to motor skills can be improved even after song crystallization. We also suggest that song performance in closed-ended vocal learners gives a reliable clue for mate choice by reflecting male quality with aging.

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Songs of American Redstarts (Setophaga ruticilla): Sequencing Rules and their Relationships to Repertoire Size

Cited by 22 publications

References 23 publications

Working memory for patterned sequences of auditory objects in a songbird

Working memory for patterned sequences of auditory objects in a songbird

Long-range Order in Canary Song

Age‐dependent song changes in a closed‐ended vocal learner: elevation of song performance after song crystallization

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