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Quick NJ, Janik VM. Bottlenose dolphins exchange signature whistles when meeting at sea. Proc Biol Sci 2012; 279:2539-45. [PMID: 22378804 PMCID: PMC3350692 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2011.2537] [Citation(s) in RCA: 53] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/05/2011] [Accepted: 02/06/2012] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
The bottlenose dolphin, Tursiops truncatus, is one of very few animals that, through vocal learning, can invent novel acoustic signals and copy whistles of conspecifics. Furthermore, receivers can extract identity information from the invented part of whistles. In captivity, dolphins use such signature whistles while separated from the rest of their group. However, little is known about how they use them at sea. If signature whistles are the main vehicle to transmit identity information, then dolphins should exchange these whistles in contexts where groups or individuals join. We used passive acoustic localization during focal boat follows to observe signature whistle use in the wild. We found that stereotypic whistle exchanges occurred primarily when groups of dolphins met and joined at sea. A sequence analysis verified that most of the whistles used during joins were signature whistles. Whistle matching or copying was not observed in any of the joins. The data show that signature whistle exchanges are a significant part of a greeting sequence that allows dolphins to identify conspecifics when encountering them in the wild.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicola J Quick
- Sea Mammal Research Unit, School of Biology, University of St Andrews, St Andrews, Fife KY16 8LB, UK.
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Eda-Fujiwara H, Imagawa T, Matsushita M, Matsuda Y, Takeuchi HA, Satoh R, Watanabe A, Zandbergen MA, Manabe K, Kawashima T, Bolhuis JJ. Localized brain activation related to the strength of auditory learning in a parrot. PLoS One 2012; 7:e38803. [PMID: 22701714 PMCID: PMC3372503 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0038803] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/30/2011] [Accepted: 05/10/2012] [Indexed: 12/03/2022] Open
Abstract
Parrots and songbirds learn their vocalizations from a conspecific tutor, much like human infants acquire spoken language. Parrots can learn human words and it has been suggested that they can use them to communicate with humans. The caudomedial pallium in the parrot brain is homologous with that of songbirds, and analogous to the human auditory association cortex, involved in speech processing. Here we investigated neuronal activation, measured as expression of the protein product of the immediate early gene ZENK, in relation to auditory learning in the budgerigar (Melopsittacus undulatus), a parrot. Budgerigar males successfully learned to discriminate two Japanese words spoken by another male conspecific. Re-exposure to the two discriminanda led to increased neuronal activation in the caudomedial pallium, but not in the hippocampus, compared to untrained birds that were exposed to the same words, or were not exposed to words. Neuronal activation in the caudomedial pallium of the experimental birds was correlated significantly and positively with the percentage of correct responses in the discrimination task. These results suggest that in a parrot, the caudomedial pallium is involved in auditory learning. Thus, in parrots, songbirds and humans, analogous brain regions may contain the neural substrate for auditory learning and memory.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hiroko Eda-Fujiwara
- Department of Chemical & Biological Sciences, Japan Women’s University, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, Japan
- Japan Society for the Promotion of Science, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Takuya Imagawa
- Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Shizuoka University, Shizuoka, Japan
| | - Masanori Matsushita
- Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Shizuoka University, Shizuoka, Japan
| | - Yasushi Matsuda
- Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Shizuoka University, Shizuoka, Japan
| | - Hiro-Aki Takeuchi
- Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Shizuoka University, Shizuoka, Japan
| | - Ryohei Satoh
- Department of Physiology, Kitasato University School of Medicine, Kanagawa, Japan
| | - Aiko Watanabe
- Department of Chemical & Biological Sciences, Japan Women’s University, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Matthijs A. Zandbergen
- Behavioural Biology and Helmholtz Institute, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Kazuchika Manabe
- Graduate School of Social and Cultural Studies, Nihon University, Saitama, Japan
| | - Takashi Kawashima
- Graduate School of Social and Cultural Studies, Nihon University, Saitama, Japan
| | - Johan J. Bolhuis
- Behavioural Biology and Helmholtz Institute, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands
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Hassell MP. Proceedings B:
welcoming outstanding research of broad interest in all aspects of organismal biology. Proc Biol Sci 2012; 279:1-2. [DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2011.2012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
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