Abstract
Our work is the first study on the vocal repertoire of one of the babbler species, Elliot’s laughingthrush. Field studies were carried out in Hupingshan Nature Reserve, Hunan Province, China. There are three types of signals in the repertoire: songs, calls (chattering), and duets. Songs and calls are used by both males and females. The song consists of a quiet introduction (short note) and a louder main part (two or three tonal notes). There are up to four song variants in the repertoire of a given pair. All songs can be classified into three types. Types I and II represent songs with the main part consisting of three notes, while type III consists of two notes. Types I and II differ from each other in certain features of the frequency modulation shape of the first two notes. All song types can be used during the spontaneous vocalization of a single bird. However, their usage in other contexts differs. Songs of types I and II are more often uttered during vocal interactions of neighbor males. Songs of type III appear to be characteristic of male–female duets. Chattering (calls) is a continuous series of broadband notes. There are several (two to five) note variants in each series. Chattering can be used both during a male–female interaction and as an alarm call. We found an inverse correlation between (1) the duration of pauses between notes, and (2) the number of note variants (“repertoire size”) in a series. Both parameters probably reflect the internal state of an individual at a given moment.
Article PDF
Similar content being viewed by others
Avoid common mistakes on your manuscript.
References
Catchpole, C.K. and Slater, P.J.B., Bird Song. Biological Themes and Variations, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2008.
Farabaugh, S.M., The ecological and social significance of duetting, in Acoustic Communication in Birds, Kroodsma, D.E. and Miller, E.H., Eds., New York: Academic press, 1982, vol. 2, pp. 85–124.
Ficken, M.S. and Popp, J.W., Syntactical organization of the gargle vocalization of the black-capped chickadee, Parus atricapillus, Ethology, 1992, vol. 91, pp. 156–168.
Ficken, M.S., Ficken, R.W., and Witkin, S.R., Vocal repertoire of the black-capped chickadee, Auk, 1978, vol. 95, pp. 34–48.
Freeberg, T.M. and Lucas, J.R., Receivers respond differently to chick-a-dee calls varying in note composition in Carolina chickadees, Poecile carolinensis, Anim. Behav., 2002, vol. 63, pp. 837–845.
Gerhard, V. and Thielcke, H., Die sozialen Funktionen verschiedener Gesangsformen ded Sonnenvogels (Leiothrix lutea), Zeitschrift fur Tierpsychologie, 1969, vol. 27, pp. 177–185.
Hall, M.L., A review of hypothesis for the function of avian duetting, Behav. Ecol. Sociobiol., 2004, vol. 55, pp. 415–430.
Kunkel, P., Mating systems of tropical birds: the effects of weakness or absence of external reproduction-timing factors with special reference to prolonged pair bonds, Zeitschrift für Tierpsychologie, 1974, vol. 34, pp. 265–307.
MacKinnon, J. and Phillipps, K., A Field Guide to the Birds of China, Oxford: Oxford Univ. Press, 2013.
Marler, P., Bird calls. Their potential for behavioral neurobiology, Ann. N.Y. Acad. Sci., 2004, vol. 1016, pp. 31–44.
Marler, P., Bird calls: a cornucopia for communication, in Nature’s Music. The Science of Birdsong, Marler, P. and Slabbekoorn, H., Eds., London: Elsevier Academic Press, 2006, pp. 132–177.
Martens, J. and Eck, S., Towards an ornithology of the Himalayas. Systematics, ecology and vocalizations of Nepal birds, Bonner Zool. Monogr., 1995, vol. 38, pp. 1–445.
Mays, H.L., Jr., Yao, C.-T., and Yuan, H.-W., Antiphonal duetting in Steere’s liocichla (Liocichla steerii): male song individuality and correlation between habitat and duetting behavior, Ecol. Res., 2006, vol. 21, pp. 311–314.
Opaev, A.S., Birdsong: does a change in the “signal” structure always entails a change in its functions?, Etol. Zoopsikhol. [Scientific Electronic Journal], 2012, no. 2 (6), p. 14.
Rasmussen, P.C. and Anderton, J.C., Birds of South Asia. The Ripley Guide, Barcelona: Lynx Edicions, 2005.
Robson, C., A Field Guide to the Birds of South-East Asia, London: Christopher Helm, 2011.
Shief, B.-S., Song structure and microgeographic variation in a population of the Grey-cheeked Fulvetta (Alcippe morrisonia) at Shoushan Nature park, southern Taiwan, Zool. Stud., 2004, vol. 43, pp. 132–141.
Sonnenschein, E. and Reyer, H.U., Mate-guarding and other functions of antiphonal duets in the slate-coloured boubou (Laniarius funebris), Zeitschrift für Tierpsychologie, 1983, vol. 63, pp. 112–140.
Templeton, C.N., Greene, E., and Davis, K., Allometry in alarm calls: black-capped chickadees encode information about predator size, Science, 2005, vol. 308, pp. 1934–1937.
Tu, H.-W. and Severinghaus, L.L., Geographic variation of the highly complex Hwamei (Garrulax canorus) songs, Zool. Stud., 2004, vol. 43, pp. 629–640.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Additional information
Original Russian Text © A.S. Opaev, Meisi Liu, Zujie Kang, 2017, published in Zoologicheskii Zhurnal, 2017, Vol. 96, No. 7, pp. 805–817.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Opaev, A.S., Liu, M. & Kang, Z. Behavioral Ecology of Elliot’s Laughingthrush (Trochalopteron (Garrulax) elliotii, Timaliidae, Aves): 2. Vocal Repertoire. Biol Bull Russ Acad Sci 44, 1100–1110 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1134/S1062359017090084
Received:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1134/S1062359017090084