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Costalunga G, Vallentin D, Benichov JI. A neuroethological view of the multifaceted sensory influences on birdsong. Curr Opin Neurobiol 2024; 86:102867. [PMID: 38520789 DOI: 10.1016/j.conb.2024.102867] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/04/2023] [Revised: 02/13/2024] [Accepted: 03/07/2024] [Indexed: 03/25/2024]
Abstract
Learning and execution of complex motor skills are often modulated by sensory feedback and contextual cues arriving across multiple sensory modalities. Vocal motor behaviors, in particular, are primarily influenced by auditory inputs, both during learning and mature vocal production. The importance of auditory input in shaping vocal output has been investigated in several songbird species that acquire their adult song based on auditory exposure to a tutor during development. Recent studies have highlighted the influences of stimuli arriving through other sensory channels in juvenile song learning and in adult song production. Here, we review changes induced by diverse sensory stimuli during the song learning process and the production of adult song, considering the neuroethological significance of sensory channels in different species of songbirds. Additionally, we highlight advances, open questions, and possible future approaches for understanding the neural circuits that enable the multimodal shaping of singing behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Giacomo Costalunga
- Max Planck Institute for Biological Intelligence, 82319, Seewiesen, Germany
| | - Daniela Vallentin
- Max Planck Institute for Biological Intelligence, 82319, Seewiesen, Germany.
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2
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Antonson ND, Enos JK, Lawson SL, Uy FMK, Gill SA, Lynch KS, Hauber ME. Functional neurogenomic responses to acoustic threats, including a heterospecific referential alarm call and its referent, in the auditory forebrain of red-winged blackbirds. Sci Rep 2024; 14:2155. [PMID: 38272959 PMCID: PMC10810909 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-51797-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/05/2023] [Accepted: 01/09/2024] [Indexed: 01/27/2024] Open
Abstract
In animal communication, functionally referential alarm calls elicit the same behavioral responses as their referents, despite their typically distinct bioacoustic traits. Yet the auditory forebrain in at least one songbird species, the black-capped chickadee Poecile atricapillus, responds similarly to threat calls and their referent predatory owl calls, as assessed by immediate early gene responses in the secondary auditory forebrain nuclei. Whether and where in the brain such perceptual and cognitive equivalence is processed remains to be understood in most other avian systems. Here, we studied the functional neurogenomic (non-) equivalence of acoustic threat stimuli perception by the red-winged blackbird Agelaius phoeniceus in response to the actual calls of the obligate brood parasitic brown-headed cowbird Molothrus ater and the referential anti-parasitic alarm calls of the yellow warbler Setophaga petechia, upon which the blackbird is known to eavesdrop. Using RNA-sequencing from neural tissue in the auditory lobule (primary and secondary auditory nuclei combined), in contrast to previous findings, we found significant differences in the gene expression profiles of both an immediate early gene, ZENK (egr-1), and other song-system relevant gene-products in blackbirds responding to cowbird vs. warbler calls. In turn, direct cues of threats (including conspecific intruder calls and nest-predator calls) elicited higher ZENK and other differential gene expression patterns compared to harmless heterospecific calls. These patterns are consistent with a perceptual non-equivalence in the auditory forebrain of adult male red-winged blackbirds in response to referential calls and the calls of their referents.
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Affiliation(s)
- N D Antonson
- Department of Evolution, Ecology, and Behavior, School of Integrative Biology, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, IL, USA
- Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Organismal Biology, Brown University, Providence, RI, 02912, USA
| | - J K Enos
- Department of Evolution, Ecology, and Behavior, School of Integrative Biology, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, IL, USA
- Illinois Natural History Survey, Prairie Research Institute, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, IL, USA
| | - S L Lawson
- Department of Evolution, Ecology, and Behavior, School of Integrative Biology, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, IL, USA
- Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, IL, USA
| | - F M K Uy
- Department of Biology, University of Rochester, Rochester, NY, USA
| | - S A Gill
- Department of Biological Sciences, Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, MI, USA
| | - K S Lynch
- Department of Biology, Hofstra University, Hempstead, NY, USA
| | - M E Hauber
- Department of Evolution, Ecology, and Behavior, School of Integrative Biology, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, IL, USA.
- Illinois Natural History Survey, Prairie Research Institute, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, IL, USA.
- Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, IL, USA.
- Advanced Science Research Center and Program in Psychology, Graduate Center of the City University of New York, New York, NY, USA.
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3
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Crudele I, Reboreda JC, Fiorini VD. Imprinting in an interspecific brood parasitic bird. Proc Biol Sci 2023; 290:20230230. [PMID: 37221846 PMCID: PMC10206446 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2023.0230] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/31/2023] [Accepted: 04/28/2023] [Indexed: 05/25/2023] Open
Abstract
Many animals learn to recognize conspecifics after an early experience with them through sexual imprinting. For brood parasitic birds, it is not possible to develop conspecific recognition using cues provided by their foster parents. One solution is that a unique species-specific signal triggers the learning of additional aspects of the conspecific's phenotype. It has been proposed that for brood parasitic cowbirds, this signal is an innate vocalization, the chatter. This vocalization might act in a cross-modal learning process through which juveniles that listen to the song learn to recognize the visual characteristics of the song's producer. We trained two groups of juvenile shiny cowbirds (Molothrus bonariensis). In one group, individuals listened to the chatter or a heterospecific call while they observed a stuffed model of the corresponding species. In the other group, individuals listened to the call of one species (cowbird or heterospecific) while they observed the stuffed model of the other species. In the preference test, juveniles chose the model associated with the chatter, regardless of whether the model was a cowbird or a heterospecific. These results show how the auditory system through a species-specific signal can lead to cross-modal learning of visual cues allowing conspecific recognition in brood parasitic cowbirds.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ignacio Crudele
- Departamento de Ecología, Genética y Evolución & Instituto de Ecología, Genética y Evolución de Buenos Aires (IEGEBA-UBA-CONICET), Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Pabellón II Ciudad Universitaria, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires C1428EGA, Argentina
| | - Juan C. Reboreda
- Departamento de Ecología, Genética y Evolución & Instituto de Ecología, Genética y Evolución de Buenos Aires (IEGEBA-UBA-CONICET), Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Pabellón II Ciudad Universitaria, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires C1428EGA, Argentina
| | - Vanina D. Fiorini
- Departamento de Ecología, Genética y Evolución & Instituto de Ecología, Genética y Evolución de Buenos Aires (IEGEBA-UBA-CONICET), Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Pabellón II Ciudad Universitaria, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires C1428EGA, Argentina
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4
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Crudele I, Reboreda JC, Fiorini VD. Preferential Begging Responses of Shiny Cowbirds to the Conspecific Chatter Call. Front Ecol Evol 2022. [DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2021.725051] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Avian brood parasites lay their eggs into the nests of other species, which incubate them and raise the chicks until their independence. Despite living their early weeks of life surrounded by heterospecifics, young brood parasites have the ability to recognize and associate to conspecifics after independence. It has been proposed that the initial conspecific recognition develops when a young parasite encounters a unique species-specific signal that triggers the learning of other aspects of the producer of the signal. For cowbirds (Molothrus spp.), this species-specific signal is hypothesized to be the chatter call. Young birds also could express auditory biases, which in some cases lead to discrimination in favor of conspecific songs. Therefore, the perceptual selectivity for chatters might be also present in nestlings. Our aim was to assess if nestlings of the shiny cowbird (M. bonariensis) present a preferential begging response to conspecific chatter calls. We evaluated if they respond more to the parasitic vocalization than host chicks and if they respond more to the chatter than to heterospecific nonhost calls. We tested shiny cowbird chicks reared by chalk-browed mockingbirds (Mimus saturninus) or house wrens (Troglodytes aedon) and host chicks, as control species. We randomly presented to 6-day-old chicks the following playback treatments: (1) conspecific chatter calls, (2) host calls, used as positive controls, and (3) nonhost calls, used as negative control. We measured if chicks begged during the playback treatments and the begging intensity. When responding to the playback of chatter calls, shiny cowbird chicks begged at a higher frequency and more intensively than host chicks. Shiny cowbird chicks reared by mockingbirds begged more intensively to playbacks of conspecific chatter calls than to host calls, while those reared by wrens begged with a similar intensity to playbacks of conspecific chatter and host calls. On the contrary, wren nestlings begged more intensively to playbacks of the wren call than to chatter calls. Mockingbird nestlings did not beg during any treatment. None of the three species begged during the playback of nonhost calls. Our results show that the chatter call produced a preferential begging response in cowbird nestlings, which may be the beginning of a process of conspecific recognition.
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Moskát C, Hauber ME. Male common cuckoos use a three-note variant of their "cu-coo" call for duetting with conspecific females. Behav Processes 2021; 191:104472. [PMID: 34363910 DOI: 10.1016/j.beproc.2021.104472] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/13/2021] [Revised: 07/20/2021] [Accepted: 08/02/2021] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Duetting is a coordinated form of acoustic communication with participants uttering calls or songs simultaneously and/or sequentially. Duetting is often observed in pair-bonded species, with mated females and males both contributing to the communal vocal output. We observed duetting between the sexes in the common cuckoo (Cuculus canorus), an obligate brood parasitic species without known pair formation. Specifically, female cuckoos use their sex-specific bubbling calls for duetting, while male cuckoos use a 3-note variant ("cu-cu-coo") of their typical and well-known 2-note ("cu-coo") territorial advertisement calls. The maximum frequency of the elements in the male's 3-note variants was higher relative to the 2-note calls, while durations of both the elements and the inter-element intervals were shorter. The vast majority (95 %) of the 3-note calling was detected together with the bubbling call, implying an intersexual duetting function, with the female calls preceding these male calls in 67 % of cases. The two call types in duetting followed each other rapidly (mean response time of females was 1.30 ± 0.71 SD s, and 0.76 ± 0.53 SD s in males), and typically overlapped with each other (95 %). Frequently (90 %), the male call was repeated 2-3 times, whereas the female call was repeated less frequently (9%). Our results are consistent with a main function of duetting in intersexual communication and coordination between female and male cuckoos.
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Affiliation(s)
- Csaba Moskát
- MTA-ELTE-MTM Ecology Research Group of the Eötvös Loránd Research Network, A Joint Research Group of the Biological Institute of the Eötvös Loránd University, Pázmány P. st. 1/C, H‑1117 Budapest, Hungary and the Hungarian Natural History Museum, Budapest, Hungary.
| | - Márk E Hauber
- Department of Evolution, Ecology, and Behavior, School of Integrative Biology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 505 S. Goodwin Avenue, Urbana, IL, 61801, USA
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Fischer EK, Hauber ME, Bell AM. Back to the basics? Transcriptomics offers integrative insights into the role of space, time and the environment for gene expression and behaviour. Biol Lett 2021; 17:20210293. [PMID: 34520681 DOI: 10.1098/rsbl.2021.0293] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Fuelled by the ongoing genomic revolution, broadscale RNA expression surveys are fast replacing studies targeting one or a few genes to understand the molecular basis of behaviour. Yet, the timescale of RNA-sequencing experiments and the dynamics of neural gene activation are insufficient to drive real-time switches between behavioural states. Moreover, the spatial, functional and transcriptional complexity of the brain (the most commonly targeted tissue in studies of behaviour) further complicates inference. We argue that a Central Dogma-like 'back-to-basics' assumption that gene expression changes cause behaviour leaves some of the most important aspects of gene-behaviour relationships unexplored, including the roles of environmental influences, timing and feedback from behaviour-and the environmental shifts it causes-to neural gene expression. No perfect experimental solutions exist but we advocate that explicit consideration, exploration and discussion of these factors will pave the way toward a richer understanding of the complicated relationships between genes, environments, brain gene expression and behaviour over developmental and evolutionary timescales.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eva K Fischer
- Department of Evolution, Ecology, and Behavior, School of Integrative Biology, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, IL 61801, USA.,Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, IL 61801, USA
| | - Mark E Hauber
- Department of Evolution, Ecology, and Behavior, School of Integrative Biology, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, IL 61801, USA.,Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, IL 61801, USA
| | - Alison M Bell
- Department of Evolution, Ecology, and Behavior, School of Integrative Biology, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, IL 61801, USA.,Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, IL 61801, USA
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7
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Lynch KS. The neuroethology of avian brood parasitism. J Exp Biol 2021; 224:272057. [PMID: 34486660 DOI: 10.1242/jeb.222307] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
Obligate brood-parasitic birds never build nests, incubate eggs or supply nestlings with food or protection. Instead, they leave their eggs in nests of other species and rely on host parents to raise their offspring, which allows the parasite to continue reproducing throughout the breeding season. Although this may be a clever fitness strategy, it is loaded with a set of dynamic challenges for brood parasites, including recognizing individuals from their own species while growing up constantly surrounded by unrelated individuals, remembering the location of potential host nests for successful reproduction and learning the song of their species while spending time being entirely surrounded by another species during a critical developmental period, a predicament that has been likened to being 'raised by wolves'. Here, I will describe what we currently know about the neurobiology associated with the challenges of being a brood parasite and what is known about the proximate mechanisms of brood parasite evolution. The neuroethology of five behaviors (mostly social) in brood parasites is discussed, including: (1) parental care (or the lack thereof), (2) species recognition, (3) song learning, (4) spatial memory and (5) pair-bonding and mate choice. This Review highlights how studies of brood parasites can lend a unique perspective to enduring neuroethological questions and describes the ways in which studying brood-parasitic species enhances our understanding of ecologically relevant behaviors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kathleen S Lynch
- Hofstra University, Department of Biology, Hempstead, NY 11549, USA
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9
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Anderson HL, Perkes A, Gottfried JS, Davies HB, White DJ, Schmidt MF. Female signal jamming in a socially monogamous brood parasite. Anim Behav 2021; 172:155-169. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2020.10.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/22/2022]
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10
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Bolton PE, Balakrishnan CN. Behavioral Genetics: Dissecting a Supergene to Understand Behavior. Curr Biol 2020; 30:R1438-R1441. [PMID: 33290715 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2020.09.081] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/01/2022]
Abstract
New research shows how alternative 'supergene' alleles of Estrogen Receptor 1 are differentially expressed in specific brain nuclei causing aggressive behavior in the white-throated sparrow.
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Affiliation(s)
- Peri E Bolton
- Department of Biology, East Carolina University, Greenville, NC 27858, USA; Department of Vertebrate Zoology, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC 20560, USA
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11
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Female-female aggression and male responses to the two colour morphs of female common cuckoos. Naturwissenschaften 2020; 107:28. [PMID: 32564143 PMCID: PMC7306036 DOI: 10.1007/s00114-020-01680-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/19/2020] [Revised: 04/23/2020] [Accepted: 04/27/2020] [Indexed: 01/01/2023]
Abstract
Female-only colour polymorphism is rare in birds, but occurs in brood parasitic cuckoos (Cuculidae). Obligate brood parasites leave incubation and parental care to other species (hosts), so female-female interactions can play a role in how parasites guard critical resources (host nests) within their laying areas. The plumage of adult female common cuckoos (Cuculus canorus) is either rufous (typically rare) or grey (common), whereas adult male conspecifics are monochromatic (grey). In previous studies, hosts and conspecific males responded with less intensity toward the rare female morph in support of a negative frequency-dependent benefit of female plumage polychromatism. Here, we assessed responses of both conspecific females and males to vocal playbacks of female calls, coupled with one of two 3D models of the different morphs of female cuckoos. At our study population, the rufous female morph was as common as the grey morph; therefore, we predicted similarly high rates of conspecific responses in both treatments. Both female and male cuckoos responded to playbacks acoustically, which demonstrated the primary role of acoustic communication in social interactions amongst cuckoos. Following this, some cuckoos flew closer to the models to inspect them visually. As predicted, no significant differences were detected between the live cuckoos’ responses toward the two colour morphs in this population. We conclude that dichromatism in female cuckoos evolved to serve one or more functions other than conspecific signalling.
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12
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Shizuka D, Hudson EJ. To accept or reject heterospecific mates: behavioural decisions underlying premating isolation. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2020; 375:20190484. [PMID: 32420857 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2019.0484] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Premating isolation in animals involves decision-making processes that affect whether individuals accept or reject heterospecific mates. An integrative understanding of the behavioural processes underlying heterospecific acceptance can clarify the conditions under which premating isolation evolves. As an illustration, we review how Reeve's (Reeve 1989 Am. Nat. 133, 407-435. (doi:10.1086/284926)) acceptance threshold model can help make sense of patterns of premating isolation in nature. This model derives a threshold trait value for acceptance for rejection of recipients of an action (e.g. mating) based on the fitness consequences of these decisions. We show that the maintenance of partial reproductive isolation can be an outcome of optimal acceptance thresholds, even in the face of reinforcement. We also use this model to clarify how the composition of multispecies communities can shape premating isolation. The acceptance threshold model can also be viewed as the behavioural underpinning of reproductive character displacement and cascading reinforcement. Finally, we highlight potential limitations of the acceptance threshold model with respect to investigating the role of sexual selection in speciation, and we propose that integration of behavioural models in speciation research will help us gain a full picture of the mechanisms underlying premating isolation. This article is part of the theme issue 'Signal detection theory in recognition systems: from evolving models to experimental tests'.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daizaburo Shizuka
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 402 Manter Hall, Lincoln, NE 68588-0118, USA
| | - Emily J Hudson
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 402 Manter Hall, Lincoln, NE 68588-0118, USA.,Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Box 351634 Station B, Nashville, TN 37235-1634, USA
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13
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Louder MIM, Lafayette M, Louder AA, Uy FMK, Balakrishnan CN, Yasukawa K, Hauber ME. Shared transcriptional responses to con- and heterospecific behavioral antagonists in a wild songbird. Sci Rep 2020; 10:4092. [PMID: 32139746 PMCID: PMC7058074 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-60231-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/21/2019] [Accepted: 02/05/2020] [Indexed: 12/05/2022] Open
Abstract
The recognition of and differential responses to salient stimuli are among the main drivers of behavioral plasticity, yet, how animals evolve and modulate functional responses to novel classes of antagonistic stimuli remain poorly understood. We studied free-living male red-winged blackbirds (Agelaius phoeniceus) to test whether gene expression responses in blood are distinct or shared between patterns of aggressive behavioral responses directed at simulated conspecific versus heterospecific intruders. In this species, males defend territories against conspecific males and respond aggressively to female brown-headed cowbirds (Molothrus ater), a brood parasite that commonly lays eggs in blackbird nests. Both conspecific songs and parasitic calls elicited aggressive responses from focal subjects and caused a downregulation in genes associated with immune system response, relative to control calls of a second, harmless heterospecific species. In turn, only the conspecific song treatment elicited an increase in singing behavior and an upregulation of genes associated with metabolic processes relative to the two heterospecific calls. Our results suggest that aspects of antagonistic behaviors to both conspecifics and brood parasites can be mediated by similar physiological responses, suggestive of shared molecular and behavioral pathways involved in the recognition and reaction to both evolutionarily old and new enemies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthew I M Louder
- Department of Evolution, Ecology, and Behavior, School of Integrative Biology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, USA.
- International Research Center for Neurointelligence, University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan.
| | | | - Amber A Louder
- Department of Evolution, Ecology, and Behavior, School of Integrative Biology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, USA
| | - Floria M K Uy
- Department of Neurobiology and Behavior, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA
| | | | - Ken Yasukawa
- Department of Biology, Beloit College, Beloit, WI, USA
| | - Mark E Hauber
- Department of Evolution, Ecology, and Behavior, School of Integrative Biology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, USA
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Sakata JT, Woolley SC. Scaling the Levels of Birdsong Analysis. THE NEUROETHOLOGY OF BIRDSONG 2020. [DOI: 10.1007/978-3-030-34683-6_1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/17/2023]
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Abstract
Social learning poses a particular problem for brood parasites, which are raised by adults of another species. Brood-parasitic cowbirds use a password, a simple signal that aids the young in identifying appropriate models for learning of their species' behaviors.
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Affiliation(s)
- William A Searcy
- Department of Biology, University of Miami, Coral Gables, FL 33157, USA.
| | - Stephen Nowicki
- Department of Biology, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708, USA
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