Summary
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1.
We used laser vibrometry to study the vibrational frequency response of the eardrum of female gray tree frogs for different positions of the sound source in three-dimensional space. Furthermore, we studied the accuracy of 3-D phonotaxis in the same species for sounds with different frequency contents.
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2.
The directionality of the eardrum was most pronounced in a narrow frequency range between 1.3 and 1.8 kHz.
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3.
The average 3-D, horizontal and vertical jump error angles for phonotactic approaches with a sound similar to the natural advertisement call (1.1 and 2.2 kHz frequency components) were 23°, 19° and 12°, respectively.
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4.
3-D jump error angle distributions for the 1.4 + 2.2 kHz, 1.0 kHz and 2.0 kHz sounds were not significantly different from that for the 1.1 + 2.2 kHz sound.
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5.
The average 3-D jump error angle for the 1.4 kHz sound was 36°, and the distribution was significantly different from that for the 1.1 + 2.2 kHz sound. Hence, phonotactic accuracy was poorer in the frequency range of maximum eardrum directionality.
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6.
Head scanning was not observed and is apparently unnecessary for accurate sound localization in three-dimensional space.
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7.
Changes in overall sound pressure level experienced by the frog during phonotactic approaches are not an important cue for sound localization.
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Abbreviations
- IVAD :
-
interaural vibration amplitude difference
- VA :
-
vibration amplitude
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Jørgensen, M.B., Gerhardt, H.C. Directional hearing in the gray tree frog Hyla versicolor: Eardrum vibrations and phonotaxis. J Comp Physiol A 169, 177–183 (1991). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00215864
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00215864