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Higher-order sequences of vocal mimicry performed by male Albert's lyrebirds are socially transmitted and enhance acoustic contrast

Most studies of acoustic communication focus on short units of vocalization such as songs, yet these units are often hierarchically organized into higher-order sequences and, outside human language, little is known about the drivers of sequence structure. Here, we investigate the organization, trans...

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Autores principales: Backhouse, Fiona, Dalziell, Anastasia H., Magrath, Robert D., Welbergen, Justin A.
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: The Royal Society 2022
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8905160/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/35259987
http://dx.doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2021.2498
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author Backhouse, Fiona
Dalziell, Anastasia H.
Magrath, Robert D.
Welbergen, Justin A.
author_facet Backhouse, Fiona
Dalziell, Anastasia H.
Magrath, Robert D.
Welbergen, Justin A.
author_sort Backhouse, Fiona
collection PubMed
description Most studies of acoustic communication focus on short units of vocalization such as songs, yet these units are often hierarchically organized into higher-order sequences and, outside human language, little is known about the drivers of sequence structure. Here, we investigate the organization, transmission and function of vocal sequences sung by male Albert's lyrebirds (Menura alberti), a species renowned for vocal imitations of other species. We quantified the organization of mimetic units into sequences, and examined the extent to which these sequences are repeated within and between individuals and shared among populations. We found that individual males organized their mimetic units into stereotyped sequences. Sequence structures were shared within and to a lesser extent among populations, implying that sequences were socially transmitted. Across the entire species range, mimetic units were sung with immediate variety and a high acoustic contrast between consecutive units, suggesting that sequence structure is a means to enhance receiver perceptions of repertoire complexity. Our results provide evidence that higher-order sequences of vocalizations can be socially transmitted, and that the order of vocal units can be functionally significant. We conclude that, to fully understand vocal behaviours, we must study both the individual vocal units and their higher-order temporal organization.
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spelling pubmed-89051602022-03-11 Higher-order sequences of vocal mimicry performed by male Albert's lyrebirds are socially transmitted and enhance acoustic contrast Backhouse, Fiona Dalziell, Anastasia H. Magrath, Robert D. Welbergen, Justin A. Proc Biol Sci Behaviour Most studies of acoustic communication focus on short units of vocalization such as songs, yet these units are often hierarchically organized into higher-order sequences and, outside human language, little is known about the drivers of sequence structure. Here, we investigate the organization, transmission and function of vocal sequences sung by male Albert's lyrebirds (Menura alberti), a species renowned for vocal imitations of other species. We quantified the organization of mimetic units into sequences, and examined the extent to which these sequences are repeated within and between individuals and shared among populations. We found that individual males organized their mimetic units into stereotyped sequences. Sequence structures were shared within and to a lesser extent among populations, implying that sequences were socially transmitted. Across the entire species range, mimetic units were sung with immediate variety and a high acoustic contrast between consecutive units, suggesting that sequence structure is a means to enhance receiver perceptions of repertoire complexity. Our results provide evidence that higher-order sequences of vocalizations can be socially transmitted, and that the order of vocal units can be functionally significant. We conclude that, to fully understand vocal behaviours, we must study both the individual vocal units and their higher-order temporal organization. The Royal Society 2022-03-09 2022-03-09 /pmc/articles/PMC8905160/ /pubmed/35259987 http://dx.doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2021.2498 Text en © 2022 The Authors. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/Published by the Royal Society under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) , which permits unrestricted use, provided the original author and source are credited.
spellingShingle Behaviour
Backhouse, Fiona
Dalziell, Anastasia H.
Magrath, Robert D.
Welbergen, Justin A.
Higher-order sequences of vocal mimicry performed by male Albert's lyrebirds are socially transmitted and enhance acoustic contrast
title Higher-order sequences of vocal mimicry performed by male Albert's lyrebirds are socially transmitted and enhance acoustic contrast
title_full Higher-order sequences of vocal mimicry performed by male Albert's lyrebirds are socially transmitted and enhance acoustic contrast
title_fullStr Higher-order sequences of vocal mimicry performed by male Albert's lyrebirds are socially transmitted and enhance acoustic contrast
title_full_unstemmed Higher-order sequences of vocal mimicry performed by male Albert's lyrebirds are socially transmitted and enhance acoustic contrast
title_short Higher-order sequences of vocal mimicry performed by male Albert's lyrebirds are socially transmitted and enhance acoustic contrast
title_sort higher-order sequences of vocal mimicry performed by male albert's lyrebirds are socially transmitted and enhance acoustic contrast
topic Behaviour
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8905160/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/35259987
http://dx.doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2021.2498
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