Journal article
The high-output singing displays of a lekking bat encode information on body size and individual identity
Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology, Vol.72(7), pp.1-14
2018
Abstract
A growing body of research suggests that songs are an important part of the courtship behavior of many bat species, however there is little information on the basic characteristics of these vocalizations, or how they may function as a courtship signal. Lekking male lesser short-tailed bats (Mystacina tuberculata) appear to use vocal displays as a primary method for attracting mates, but it is unclear if these vocalizations constitute songs, and what characteristics females may use for mate selection. We recorded 16 lekking males and described the frequency and temporal properties of their vocalizations. We identified four notes (upsweeps, downsweeps, trills, and tones) that comprise courtship vocalizations, and males produced these notes either singly, or combined them linearly to form composite syllables. We classified 51 distinct syllable types (with an average of 29 types per male), with four (trills, upsweep-trills, trill-downsweeps, and upsweep-trill-downsweeps) comprising 69% of all syllables produced. The duration of trill-downsweeps scaled negatively with forearm length (a proxy for body size in bats), and all four main syllable types showed evidence of individuality. Based on the behavioral characteristics and contexts of these courtship vocalizations, we posit that this behavior constitutes singing. Furthermore, M. tuberculata potentially has one of the highest sustained song outputs yet described. Our results suggest the singing displays of M. tuberculata are signals that provide useful, honest cues of male characteristics and identity to females, and are as complex as the songs of many passerines.
Details
- Title
- The high-output singing displays of a lekking bat encode information on body size and individual identity
- Authors
- Cory Toth (Corresponding Author) - Boise State UniversityStuart Parsons (Author) - Queensland University of Technology
- Publication details
- Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology, Vol.72(7), pp.1-14
- Publisher
- Springer
- DOI
- 10.1007/s00265-018-2496-4
- ISSN
- 1432-0762
- Organisation Unit
- School of Science, Technology and Engineering; University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland
- Language
- English
- Record Identifier
- 99575107002621
- Output Type
- Journal article
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- Behavioral Sciences
- Ecology
- Zoology
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