Contact calling behaviour in the male ring ‐tailed lemur (Lemur catta)
Abstract
The ring‐tailed lemur (Lemur catta) is a group‐living strepsirhine primate endemic to Madagascar that has a complex vocal repertoire including affiliative moan and hmm calls. Past research has suggested that both vocalisations may be contact calls, and we assessed their usage in addition to examining the effect of individual differences and social factors on male calling behaviour. We tested three hypotheses: the group cohesion, preferred companion and individual differences hypotheses. From March to July 2010, 565 h of focal animal data were collected on 31 males aged ≥1 year at the Beza Mahafaly Special ...
Source: Ethology - July 4, 2017 Category: Zoology Authors: Laura M. Bolt, Erica Tennenhouse Tags: RESEARCH PAPER Source Type: research
Subadult male Flap ‐necked Chameleon, Chamaeleo dilepsis, day‐resting in a small bush in Telperion Nature Reserve, South Africa. This species' common name derives from the large and movable flaps that protrude from either side of the upper surface of the neck. The sex can be determined based on the presence of the hemipenal bulges (not visible on the picture) and that of a nipple‐like spur on the hind legs. Adult males also have taller casques and larger flaps than females. Photograph reproduced by permission of Emmanuel Do Linh San.
(Source: Ethology)
Source: Ethology - July 3, 2017 Category: Zoology Tags: Front Cover Source Type: research
High levels of gene flow among song dialect populations of the Puget Sound white ‐crowned sparrow
Abstract
Populations within a species can show geographic variation in behavioral traits that affect mating decisions or limit dispersal. This may lead to restricted gene flow, resulting in a correlation between behavioral variation and genetic differentiation. Populations of a songbird that differ in a learned behavioral trait, their song dialects, may also differ genetically. If song dialects function as mating barriers, evolutionary processes such as genetic drift should lead to divergence in allele frequencies among dialect populations. The Puget Sound white‐crowned sparrow (Zonotrichia leucophrys pugetensis) is an e...
Source: Ethology - July 3, 2017 Category: Zoology Authors: Angelika Poesel, Anthony C. Fries, Lisa Miller, H. Lisle Gibbs, Jill A. Soha, Douglas A. Nelson Tags: RESEARCH PAPER Source Type: research
An enemy of your enemy is your friend: Impact of predators on aggregation behavior of gammarids
Abstract
Predation pressure may affect many aspects of prey behavior, including forming groups and changes in social interactions. We studied the aggregation behavior of competing gammarids Dikerogammarus villosus and Pontogammarus robustoides (Amphipoda, Crustacea) to check whether they modify their preferences for conspecifics or heterospecifics in response to predator (the racer goby Babka gymnotrachelus) kairomones in the presence or absence of stone shelters (alternative protection source). Both species exhibited preferences toward shelters occupied by conspecifics over empty shelters and conspecifics apart from shelt...
Source: Ethology - July 3, 2017 Category: Zoology Authors: Łukasz Jermacz, Jagoda Andrzejczak, Emilia Arczyńska, Joanna Zielska, Jarosław Kobak Tags: RESEARCH PAPER Source Type: research
Seasonal and individual predictors of diet in a free ‐ranging population of mandrills
In this study, we evaluated the impact of seasonality and demographic characteristics on diet and feeding habits in the only free‐ranging population of habituated mandrills (Mandrillus sphinx), a forest‐dwelling species inhabiting the dense humid forests of Central Africa. We collected fine‐grained quantitative data on feeding behavior of 57 individually‐recognized animals of both sexes and different age classes during a 17‐month period. We identified most consumed plant species and determined their abundance in the habitat of the studied mandrills. We showed that diet in this species was extremely diverse and in...
Source: Ethology - July 3, 2017 Category: Zoology Authors: Gontran Nsi Akoue, Wilfried Mbading ‐Mbading, Eric Willaume, Alain Souza, Bertrand Mbatchi, Marie J. E. Charpentier Tags: RESEARCH PAPER Source Type: research
Effects of lions on behaviour and endocrine stress in plains zebras
Abstract
Living under predation risk may alter both behaviour and physiology of potential prey. In extreme cases, such alterations may have serious demographic consequences, and recent studies support that non‐lethal effects of predation may have broad ecological consequences. However, behavioural and physiological responses to predation risk may be related to trade‐offs associated with resource acquisition and direct predation risk. We validated an enzyme‐linked immunoassay (EIA) for non‐invasive monitoring of stress in plains zebras (Equus quagga) from faecal material. We used this assay in combination with behav...
Source: Ethology - July 3, 2017 Category: Zoology Authors: St éphanie Périquet, Peter Richardson, Elissa Z. Cameron, André Ganswindt, Lydia Belton, Elize Loubser, Fredrik Dalerum Tags: RESEARCH PAPER Source Type: research
Subharmonics increase the auditory impact of female koala rejection calls
Abstract
Although non‐linear phenomena are common in human and non‐human animal vocalisations, their functional relevance remains poorly understood. One theory posits that non‐linear phenomena generate unpredictability in vocalisations, which increases the auditory impact of vocal signals, and makes animals less likely to habituate to call repetition. Female koalas (Phascolarctos cinereus) produce vocal signals when they reject male copulation attempts that contain relatively high levels of non‐linear phenomena, and thus may function as attention grabbing vocal signals during the breeding season. To test this hypot...
Source: Ethology - June 20, 2017 Category: Zoology Authors: Benjamin D. Charlton, Darcy J. Watchorn, Desley A. Whisson Tags: RESEARCH PAPER Source Type: research
Experimental test of the mechanism underlying sexual segregation at communal roosts of harvestmen (Prionostemma spp.)
Abstract
Closely related, ecologically similar species often roost in distinctly different habitats, and roosting patterns also vary within species in relation to sex, age and season. The causes of such variation are not well understood at either a proximate or ultimate level. We studied communal roosting in two congeneric species of Prionostemma harvestmen at a rainforest site in Nicaragua. Previous research showed that Prionostemma sp. 1 forms male‐biased communal roosts in tree‐root cavities, while Prionostemma sp. 2 forms communal roosts of variable but temporally stable sex ratios on spiny palms. Here, we investig...
Source: Ethology - June 20, 2017 Category: Zoology Authors: Brigit D. Harvey, Kaylee N. Vanni, Debra M. Shier, Gregory F. Grether Tags: RESEARCH PAPER Source Type: research
Learning and time ‐dependent cue choice in the desert ant, Melophorus bagoti
Abstract
Foraging ants are known to use multiple sources of information to return to the nest. These cue sets are employed by independent navigational systems including path integration in the case of celestial cues and vision‐based learning in the case of terrestrial landmarks and the panorama. When cue sets are presented in conflict, the Australian desert ant species, Melophorus bagoti, will choose a compromise heading between the directions dictated by the cues or, when navigating on well‐known routes, foragers choose the direction indicated by the terrestrial cues of the panorama against the dictates of celestial c...
Source: Ethology - June 20, 2017 Category: Zoology Authors: Cody A. Freas, Ken Cheng Tags: RESEARCH PAPER Source Type: research
Amotz Zahavi (1928 –2017)
(Source: Ethology)
Source: Ethology - June 14, 2017 Category: Zoology Authors: Anders Pape M øller Tags: OBITUARY Source Type: research
Personality and fitness consequences of flight initiation distance and mating behavior in subdominant male reindeer (Rangifer tarandus)
Abstract
Animal personality has been studied extensively in recent years, yet multidimensionality in tendencies of risk‐related behavior, and the role of such consistency from a mating tactics perspective, is yet to be investigated. We used a semi‐domesticated herd of reindeer (Rangifer tarandus) to examine individual subdominant male propensity to risk mating attempts on guarded females, as well as flight initiation distance (FID), within the personality paradigm to elucidate potential fitness consequences of consistency from an adaptive perspective. Data were collected at the Kutuharju Reindeer Research Station in Ka...
Source: Ethology - June 14, 2017 Category: Zoology Authors: Justin S. Strong, Robert B. Weladji, Øystein Holand, Knut H. Røed, Mauri Nieminen Tags: RESEARCH PAPER Source Type: research
Dodging the moon: The moon effect on activity allocation of prey in the presence of predators
Abstract
Animals can adapt their activity patterns throughout the circadian cycle. Prey may use moonlight as a predation risk cue and allocate their activity to lower risk periods. Here, we assessed moon transit influence on the activity allocation of nocturnal mammalian prey, in the presence of a predator (pumas, Puma concolor), during different moon phases, through camera trapping in Central Amazon. Thirty camera traps were installed 2 km apart from each other in each of our three study sites. Prey record distributions were assessed across the moon cycle, and their daily activity patterns were described in each moon pha...
Source: Ethology - June 14, 2017 Category: Zoology Authors: Lu ís P. Pratas‐Santiago, André L. S. Gonçalves, António J. A. Nogueira, Wilson R. Spironello Tags: RESEARCH PAPER Source Type: research
Sexual differentiation and seasonal variation in response to conspecific and heterospecific acoustic signals
Abstract
Interspecific territoriality is frequently reported between closely related species; however, few studies have demonstrated interspecific territoriality between distantly related species living in sympatry. We conducted playback experiments to investigate territorial behaviour in male and female White‐bellied Wrens (Uropsila leucogastra) in response to simulated conspecific and heterospecific intruders during the breeding and non‐breeding seasons. We explored whether heterospecific songs of the Happy Wren (Pheugopedius felix), a distantly related species and ecological competitor, elicited antagonistic respons...
Source: Ethology - June 14, 2017 Category: Zoology Authors: J. Roberto Sosa ‐López, Daniel J. Mennill, Katherine Renton Tags: RESEARCH PAPER Source Type: research
No need to shout: Effect of signal loudness on sibling communication in barn owls Tyto alba
Abstract
In animal communication, signal loudness is often ignored and seldom measured. We used a playback experiment to examine the role of vocal loudness (i.e., sound pressure level) in sibling to sibling communication of nestling barn owls Tyto alba. In this species, siblings vocally negotiate among each other for priority access to parental food resources. Call rate and call duration play key roles in this vocal communication system, with the most vocal nestlings deterring their siblings from competing for access to the food item next delivered by parents. Here, we broadcast calls at different loudness levels and call ...
Source: Ethology - June 14, 2017 Category: Zoology Authors: Am élie N. Dreiss, Pauline Ducouret, Charlène A. Ruppli, Virginie Rossier, Lucile Hernandez, Xavier Falourd, Patrick Marmaroli, Dorian Cazau, Hervé Lissek, Alexandre Roulin Tags: RESEARCH PAPER Source Type: research
Male Cheetah, Acinonyx jubatus, sitting on a vantage point and on the lookout for potential prey. Photograph taken in Lalibela Private Game Reserve and reproduced by permission of Kim Madikiza.
(Source: Ethology)
Source: Ethology - June 14, 2017 Category: Zoology Tags: Front Cover Source Type: research
