1
|
Kobisk A, Kwiatkowski MA. Effects of anthropogenic light on anuran calling site. ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION (BARKING, ESSEX : 1987) 2023; 333:122005. [PMID: 37330191 DOI: 10.1016/j.envpol.2023.122005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/26/2023] [Revised: 05/20/2023] [Accepted: 06/08/2023] [Indexed: 06/19/2023]
Abstract
The natural environment can be negatively impacted by a variety of human activities, including the production of artificial light at night. Recent studies suggest that pollution from anthropogenic light alters animal behavior. Despite being highly nocturnal, little attention has been given to anurans and the effects artificial light at night has on their behavior. This study investigated whether artificial light influenced male call site selection in east Texas anurans. Ambient light levels were quantified at five sites that varied in urbanization and artificial light levels. Calling males were located and ambient light was then measured at the male's call location. Light levels at those call locations were compared to the general light environment as measured at random locations in the area. There was a consistent pattern where males at the brightest sites called from locations darker than the general light environment. However, male call locations at the brightest sites were generally brighter than those at the darker sites suggesting that, while male anurans avoid illuminated areas for calling, males in more urbanized populations may be unable to do so. As such, male anurans at sites with higher light pollution may experience a form of habitat loss where preferred darker habitat is not available.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Ashley Kobisk
- Department of Biology, Stephen F. Austin State University, P.O. Box 13003, Nacogdoches, TX, 75962, USA
| | - Matthew A Kwiatkowski
- Department of Biology, Stephen F. Austin State University, P.O. Box 13003, Nacogdoches, TX, 75962, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Zhu B, Zhang H, Chen Q, He Q, Zhao X, Sun X, Wang T, Wang J, Cui J. Noise affects mate choice based on visual information via cross-sensory interference. ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION (BARKING, ESSEX : 1987) 2022; 308:119680. [PMID: 35787421 DOI: 10.1016/j.envpol.2022.119680] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/20/2022] [Revised: 06/12/2022] [Accepted: 06/22/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Animal communication is often hampered by noise interference. Noise masking has primarily been studied in terms of its unimodal effect on sound information provision and use, while little is known about its cross-modal effect and how animals weigh unimodal and multimodal courtship cues in noisy environments. Here, we examined the cross-modal effects of background noise on female visual perception of mate choice and female preference for multimodal displays (sound + vocal sac) in a species of treefrog. We tested female mate choices using audio/video playbacks in the presence and absence of noise (white noise band-filtered to match or mismatch female sensitive hearing range, heterospecific chorus). Surprisingly, multimodal displays do not improve receiver performance in noise. The heterospecific chorus and white noise band-filtered to match female sensitive hearing ranges, significantly reduced female responses to the attractive visual stimuli in addition to directly impairing auditory information use. Meanwhile, the cross-modal impacts of background noise are influenced to some extent by whether the noise band matches female sensitive hearing range and the difficulty of distinguishing tasks. Our results add to the evidence for cross-modal effects of noise and are the first to demonstrate that background noise can disrupt female responses to visual information related to mate choice, which may reduce the communication efficiency of audiovisual signals in noisy environments and impose fitness consequences. This study has key ecological and evolutionary implications because it illustrates how noise influences mate choice in wildlife via cross-sensory interference, which is crucial in revealing the function and evolution of multimodal signals in noisy environments as well as informing evidence-based conservation strategies for forecasting and mitigating the multimodal impacts of noise interference on wildlife.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Bicheng Zhu
- CAS Key Laboratory of Mountain Ecological Restoration and Bioresource Utilization & Ecological Restoration and Biodiversity Conservation Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, Chengdu Institute of Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chengdu, 610041, Sichuan, China
| | - Haodi Zhang
- CAS Key Laboratory of Mountain Ecological Restoration and Bioresource Utilization & Ecological Restoration and Biodiversity Conservation Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, Chengdu Institute of Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chengdu, 610041, Sichuan, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China
| | - Qinghua Chen
- South China Institute of Environmental Sciences, Ministry of Ecology and Environment, Guangzhou, 510655, Guangdong, China
| | - Qiaoling He
- CAS Key Laboratory of Mountain Ecological Restoration and Bioresource Utilization & Ecological Restoration and Biodiversity Conservation Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, Chengdu Institute of Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chengdu, 610041, Sichuan, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China
| | - Xiaomeng Zhao
- CAS Key Laboratory of Mountain Ecological Restoration and Bioresource Utilization & Ecological Restoration and Biodiversity Conservation Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, Chengdu Institute of Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chengdu, 610041, Sichuan, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China
| | - Xiaoqian Sun
- CAS Key Laboratory of Mountain Ecological Restoration and Bioresource Utilization & Ecological Restoration and Biodiversity Conservation Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, Chengdu Institute of Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chengdu, 610041, Sichuan, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China
| | - Tongliang Wang
- Ministry of Education Key Laboratory for Ecology of Tropical Islands, Key Laboratory of Tropical Animal and Plant Ecology of Hainan Province, College of Life Sciences, Hainan Normal University, Haikou, 571158, Hainan, China
| | - Jichao Wang
- Ministry of Education Key Laboratory for Ecology of Tropical Islands, Key Laboratory of Tropical Animal and Plant Ecology of Hainan Province, College of Life Sciences, Hainan Normal University, Haikou, 571158, Hainan, China
| | - Jianguo Cui
- CAS Key Laboratory of Mountain Ecological Restoration and Bioresource Utilization & Ecological Restoration and Biodiversity Conservation Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, Chengdu Institute of Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chengdu, 610041, Sichuan, China.
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Diversity and Sexual Dichromatism in Treefrog Throat Coloration: Potential Signal Function? J HERPETOL 2022. [DOI: 10.1670/21-047] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
|
4
|
Höbel G, Feagles O, Moore A, Reichert M, Stratman K. Random mating for body size despite fitness benefits of size‐assortative mating in a treefrog. Ethology 2022. [DOI: 10.1111/eth.13316] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Gerlinde Höbel
- Behavioral and Molecular Ecology Group, Department of Biological Sciences University of Wisconsin‐Milwaukee Milwaukee Wisconsin USA
| | - Olivia Feagles
- Behavioral and Molecular Ecology Group, Department of Biological Sciences University of Wisconsin‐Milwaukee Milwaukee Wisconsin USA
| | - Abigail Moore
- Behavioral and Molecular Ecology Group, Department of Biological Sciences University of Wisconsin‐Milwaukee Milwaukee Wisconsin USA
| | - Michael Reichert
- Behavioral and Molecular Ecology Group, Department of Biological Sciences University of Wisconsin‐Milwaukee Milwaukee Wisconsin USA
- Department of Integrative Biology Oklahoma State University Stillwater Oklahoma USA
| | - Kane Stratman
- Behavioral and Molecular Ecology Group, Department of Biological Sciences University of Wisconsin‐Milwaukee Milwaukee Wisconsin USA
| |
Collapse
|
5
|
Li H, Schrode KM, Bee MA. Vocal sacs do not function in multimodal mate attraction under nocturnal illumination in Cope's grey treefrog. Anim Behav 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2022.05.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
|
6
|
Zhao L, Wang J, Zhang H, Wang T, Yang Y, Tang Y, Halfwerk W, Cui J. Parasite defensive limb movements enhance acoustic signal attraction in male little torrent frogs. eLife 2022; 11:e76083. [PMID: 35522043 PMCID: PMC9122496 DOI: 10.7554/elife.76083] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/03/2021] [Accepted: 05/03/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Many animals rely on complex signals that target multiple senses to attract mates and repel rivals. These multimodal displays can however also attract unintended receivers, which can be an important driver of signal complexity. Despite being taxonomically widespread, we often lack insight into how multimodal signals evolve from unimodal signals and in particular what roles unintended eavesdroppers play. Here, we assess whether the physical movements of parasite defense behavior increase the complexity and attractiveness of an acoustic sexual signal in the little torrent frog (Amolops torrentis). Calling males of this species often display limb movements in order to defend against blood-sucking parasites such as frog-biting midges that eavesdrop on their acoustic signal. Through mate choice tests we show that some of these midge-evoked movements influence female preference for acoustic signals. Our data suggest that midge-induced movements may be incorporated into a sexual display, targeting both hearing and vision in the intended receiver. Females may play an important role in incorporating these multiple components because they prefer signals which combine multiple modalities. Our results thus help to understand the relationship between natural and sexual selection pressure operating on signalers and how in turn this may influence multimodal signal evolution.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Longhui Zhao
- CAS Key Laboratory of Mountain Ecological Restoration and Bioresource Utilization & Ecological Restoration and Biodiversity Conservation Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, Chengdu Institute of Biology, Chinese Academy of SciencesChengduChina
- Ministry of Education Key Laboratory for Ecology of Tropical Islands, Key Laboratory of Tropical Animal and Plant Ecology of Hainan Province, College of Life Sciences, Hainan Normal UniversityHaikouChina
| | - Jichao Wang
- Ministry of Education Key Laboratory for Ecology of Tropical Islands, Key Laboratory of Tropical Animal and Plant Ecology of Hainan Province, College of Life Sciences, Hainan Normal UniversityHaikouChina
| | - Haodi Zhang
- CAS Key Laboratory of Mountain Ecological Restoration and Bioresource Utilization & Ecological Restoration and Biodiversity Conservation Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, Chengdu Institute of Biology, Chinese Academy of SciencesChengduChina
| | - Tongliang Wang
- Ministry of Education Key Laboratory for Ecology of Tropical Islands, Key Laboratory of Tropical Animal and Plant Ecology of Hainan Province, College of Life Sciences, Hainan Normal UniversityHaikouChina
| | - Yue Yang
- CAS Key Laboratory of Mountain Ecological Restoration and Bioresource Utilization & Ecological Restoration and Biodiversity Conservation Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, Chengdu Institute of Biology, Chinese Academy of SciencesChengduChina
| | - Yezhong Tang
- CAS Key Laboratory of Mountain Ecological Restoration and Bioresource Utilization & Ecological Restoration and Biodiversity Conservation Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, Chengdu Institute of Biology, Chinese Academy of SciencesChengduChina
| | - Wouter Halfwerk
- Department of Ecological Sciences, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, De BoelelaanAmsterdamNetherlands
| | - Jianguo Cui
- CAS Key Laboratory of Mountain Ecological Restoration and Bioresource Utilization & Ecological Restoration and Biodiversity Conservation Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, Chengdu Institute of Biology, Chinese Academy of SciencesChengduChina
| |
Collapse
|
7
|
Feagles O, Höbel G. Mate preferences and choosiness are distinct components of mate choice in Eastern Gray Treefrogs (Hyla versicolor). Am Nat 2022; 200:506-517. [DOI: 10.1086/720730] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/04/2022]
|
8
|
Höbel G, Rodríguez RL. Positive-to-negative behavioural responses suggest hedonic evaluation in treefrog mate choice. Proc Biol Sci 2022; 289:20211822. [PMID: 35042417 PMCID: PMC8767204 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2021.1822] [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: 08/16/2021] [Accepted: 12/16/2021] [Indexed: 01/28/2023] Open
Abstract
Sexual competition hinges on the ability to impress other conspecifics, to drive them away or attract them. In such cases, the selective environment may be hedonic or affective in nature, as it consists of the evaluations of the individuals making the decisions. This may contribute to the power of sexual selection because evaluations may range from positive to negative rather than simply from positive to neutral. Selection due to mate choice may therefore be stronger than currently appreciated. Further, change in preferred mate types can occur simply by changes (flips) in the evaluation of similar display features, adding to the dynamism of sexual selection as well as its strength. We tested the hypothesis of positive-to-negative behavioural responses in mate choice with a playback experiment using two treefrog species with 'mirror image' structures in their advertisement and aggressive calls. Female treefrog responses ranged from approach to evasion, and the presence of an aversive stimulus tainted evaluation of an attractive stimulus. Further, females in the two species showed flips in approach/evasion of stimuli with comparable signal structure. These results suggest that hedonic evaluation may have an important role in mate choice and showcase how mechanistic analysis can help understand evolutionary processes.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Gerlinde Höbel
- Behavioral and Molecular Ecology Group, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee, Milwaukee, WI 53201, USA
| | - Rafael L. Rodríguez
- Behavioral and Molecular Ecology Group, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee, Milwaukee, WI 53201, USA
| |
Collapse
|
9
|
Feagles OS, Höbel G. Female gray treefrogs maintain mate choice decisions under predation threat, but adjust movements to reduce conspicuousness during mate approach. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2022. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-021-03124-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
|
10
|
|
11
|
Stratman KD, Oldehoeft EA, Höbel G. Woe is the loner: Female treefrogs prefer clusters of displaying males over single "hotshot" males. Evolution 2021; 75:3026-3036. [PMID: 34626427 DOI: 10.1111/evo.14376] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/12/2021] [Revised: 08/30/2021] [Accepted: 09/10/2021] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
Communal displays such as leks and choruses are puzzling phenomena, as it is not obvious why signalers or choosers should aggregate. It has been hypothesized that signalers in leks enjoy higher per-capita reproductive success because choosers prefer to sample among dense configurations ("clusters") that are easier to compare. Although female preferences as well as the signal features of attractive males are well characterized in many chorusing species, we know little about how mate sampling is influenced by the spatial dynamics within communal displays. Here, we ask how female Eastern Gray Treefrogs (Hyla versicolor) respond to isolated and clustered call stimuli in a simple one versus three playback design. We explored (i) whether females exhibit a general preference for call clusters, (ii) whether spatial preference is robust to call-feature preference, and (iii) how this affects the relative success of attractive and unattractive males in different spatial combinations. We found generalized spatial discrimination against lone callers but did observe fine-scale assessment of call features within clusters. The prominence of the spatial preference impacts the attractiveness of males, conferring particular advantage to attractive callers within clusters, while reducing attractiveness of isolated males regardless of their acoustic features. Our findings indicate that female frogs navigate complex choruses by initially orientating toward clusters of calling males, and then assess call features within them. This study provides novel insight into the mate choice heuristics involved in animal choruses.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Kane D Stratman
- Behavioral and Molecular Ecology Group, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, 53201
| | - Emma A Oldehoeft
- Behavioral and Molecular Ecology Group, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, 53201
| | - Gerlinde Höbel
- Behavioral and Molecular Ecology Group, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, 53201
| |
Collapse
|
12
|
Learning how to eavesdrop in multiple modalities: a test of associative learning using unimodal and multimodal playback. Anim Behav 2021. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2021.05.014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/26/2022]
|
13
|
James LS, Halfwerk W, Hunter KL, Page RA, Taylor RC, Wilson PS, Ryan MJ. Covariation among multimodal components in the courtship display of the túngara frog. J Exp Biol 2021; 224:269203. [PMID: 34142696 DOI: 10.1242/jeb.241661] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/03/2020] [Accepted: 04/30/2021] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
Communication systems often include a variety of components, including those that span modalities, which may facilitate detection and decision-making. For example, female túngara frogs and fringe-lipped bats generally rely on acoustic mating signals to find male túngara frogs in a mating or foraging context, respectively. However, two additional cues (vocal sac inflation and water ripples) can enhance detection and choice behavior. To date, we do not know the natural variation and covariation of these three components. To address this, we made detailed recordings of calling males, including call amplitude, vocal sac volume and water ripple height, in 54 frogs (2430 calls). We found that all three measures correlated, with the strongest association between the vocal sac volume and call amplitude. We also found that multimodal models predicted the mass of calling males better than unimodal models. These results demonstrate how multimodal components of a communication system relate to each other and provide an important foundation for future studies on how receivers integrate and compare complex displays.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Logan S James
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of Texas, Austin, TX 78712, USA.,Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Apartado 0843-03092, Balboa, Ancón, Panamá
| | - Wouter Halfwerk
- Department of Ecological Science, VU University, Amsterdam 1081 HV, The Netherlands
| | - Kimberly L Hunter
- Department of Biological Sciences, Salisbury University, Salisbury, MD 21801, USA
| | - Rachel A Page
- Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Apartado 0843-03092, Balboa, Ancón, Panamá
| | - Ryan C Taylor
- Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Apartado 0843-03092, Balboa, Ancón, Panamá.,Department of Biological Sciences, Salisbury University, Salisbury, MD 21801, USA
| | - Preston S Wilson
- Applied Research Laboratories and Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Texas, Austin, TX 78713, USA
| | - Michael J Ryan
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of Texas, Austin, TX 78712, USA.,Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Apartado 0843-03092, Balboa, Ancón, Panamá
| |
Collapse
|
14
|
Zhu B, Zhou Y, Yang Y, Deng K, Wang T, Wang J, Tang Y, Ryan MJ, Cui J. Multisensory modalities increase working memory for mating signals in a treefrog. J Anim Ecol 2021; 90:1455-1465. [PMID: 33666233 DOI: 10.1111/1365-2656.13465] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/18/2020] [Accepted: 02/17/2021] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
Animal choruses, such as those found in insects and frogs, are often intermittent. Thus, females sampling males in the chorus might have to remember the location of the potential mates' calls during periods of silence. Although a number of studies have shown that frogs use and prefer multimodal mating signals, usually acoustic plus visual, it is not clear why they do so. Here we tested the hypothesis that preference for multimodal signals over unimodal signals might be due to multimodal signals instantiating longer memories than unimodal signals, particularly during the inter-chorus intervals. We tested this hypothesis in serrate-legged small treefrogs Kurixalus odontotarsus whose males produce advertisement calls accompanied by conspicuous vocal sac inflation. Females were tested with acoustic and acoustic + visual (video of inflating-deflating vocal sac) mating calls. We found that females prefer multimodal calls over unimodal, audio-only calls. Furthermore, multimodal calls are still preferred after a silent period of up to 30 s, a time that spans the average silent period of the chorus. This was not true of unimodal calls. Our results demonstrate that a multimodal signal can engage longer working memory than a unimodal signal, and thus female memory might favour the evolution of multimodal signals in males through sexual selection. Selection might also favour female preference for multimodal signals if longer memory facilitates mate searching and assessment. Our study does not allow us to elucidate the sequence of evolution of this trait and preference.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Bicheng Zhu
- Chengdu Institute of Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chengdu, China
| | - Ya Zhou
- Chengdu Institute of Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chengdu, China.,University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Yue Yang
- Chengdu Institute of Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chengdu, China
| | - Ke Deng
- Chengdu Institute of Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chengdu, China
| | - Tongliang Wang
- Ministry of Education Key Laboratory for Tropical Plant and Animal Ecology, College of Life Sciences, Hainan Normal University, Haikou, China
| | - Jichao Wang
- Ministry of Education Key Laboratory for Tropical Plant and Animal Ecology, College of Life Sciences, Hainan Normal University, Haikou, China
| | - Yezhong Tang
- Chengdu Institute of Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chengdu, China
| | - Michael J Ryan
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of Texas, Austin, TX, USA
| | - Jianguo Cui
- Chengdu Institute of Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chengdu, China
| |
Collapse
|
15
|
Taylor RC, Wilhite KO, Ludovici RJ, Mitchell KM, Halfwerk W, Page RA, Ryan MJ, Hunter KL. Complex sensory environments alter mate choice outcomes. J Exp Biol 2021; 224:jeb233288. [PMID: 33188061 DOI: 10.1242/jeb.233288] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/16/2020] [Accepted: 11/06/2020] [Indexed: 02/05/2023]
Abstract
Noise is a common problem in animal communication. We know little, however, about how animals communicate in the presence of noise using multimodal signals. Multimodal signals are hypothesised to be favoured by evolution because they increase the efficacy of detection and discrimination in noisy environments. We tested the hypothesis that female túngara frogs' responses to attractive male advertisement calls are improved in noise when a visual signal component is added to the available choices. We tested this at two levels of decision complexity (two and three choices). In a two-choice test, the presence of noise did not reduce female preferences for attractive calls. The visual component of a calling male, associated with an unattractive call, also did not reduce preference for attractive calls in the absence of noise. In the presence of noise, however, females were more likely to choose an unattractive call coupled with the visual component. In three-choice tests, the presence of noise alone reduced female responses to attractive calls and this was not strongly affected by the presence or absence of visual components. The responses in these experiments fail to support the multimodal signal efficacy hypothesis. Instead, the data suggest that audio-visual perception and cognitive processing, related to mate choice decisions, are dependent on the complexity of the sensory scene.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Ryan C Taylor
- Department of Biology, Salisbury University, Salisbury, MD 21801, USA
- Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Apartado 0843-03092 Balboa, Ancón, Republic of Panama
| | - Kyle O Wilhite
- Department of Biology, Salisbury University, Salisbury, MD 21801, USA
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of Texas, Austin, TX 78712, USA
| | | | - Kelsey M Mitchell
- Department of Biology, Salisbury University, Salisbury, MD 21801, USA
| | - Wouter Halfwerk
- Department of Ecological Science, VU University, Amsterdam 1081 HV, The Netherlands
| | - Rachel A Page
- Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Apartado 0843-03092 Balboa, Ancón, Republic of Panama
| | - Michael J Ryan
- Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Apartado 0843-03092 Balboa, Ancón, Republic of Panama
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of Texas, Austin, TX 78712, USA
| | - Kimberly L Hunter
- Department of Biology, Salisbury University, Salisbury, MD 21801, USA
| |
Collapse
|
16
|
Dougherty LR. Designing mate choice experiments. Biol Rev Camb Philos Soc 2020; 95:759-781. [PMID: 32022418 DOI: 10.1111/brv.12586] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/24/2019] [Revised: 01/22/2020] [Accepted: 01/23/2020] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
The important role that mate choice plays in the lives of animals is matched by the large and active research field dedicated to studying it. Researchers work on a wide range of species and behaviours, and so the experimental approaches used to measure animal mate choice are highly variable. Importantly, these differences are often not purely cosmetic; they can strongly influence the measurement of choice, for example by varying the behaviour of animals during tests, the aspects of choice actually measured, and statistical power. Consideration of these effects are important when comparing results among studies using different types of test, or when using laboratory results to predict animal behaviour in natural populations. However, these effects have been underappreciated by the mate choice literature to date. I focus on five key experimental considerations that may influence choice: (i) should mating be allowed to occur, or should a proxy behavioural measure of preference be used instead? (ii) Should subjects be given a choice of options? (iii) Should each subject be tested more than once, either with the same or different stimuli? (iv) When given a choice, how many options should the subject choose between? (v) What form should the experimental stimuli take? I discuss the practical advantages and disadvantages of common experimental approaches, and how they may influence the measurement of mate choice in systematic ways. Different approaches often influence the ability of animals to perceive and compare stimuli presented during tests, or the perceived costs and benefits of being choosy. Given that variation in the design of mate choice experiments is likely unavoidable, I emphasise that there is no single 'correct' approach to measuring choice across species, although ecological relevance is crucial if the aim is to understand how choice acts in natural populations. I also highlight the need for quantitative estimates of the sizes of potentially important effects, without which we cannot make informed design decisions.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Liam R Dougherty
- Department of Evolution, Ecology and Behaviour, Institute of Integrative Biology, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, L69 7RB, UK
| |
Collapse
|
17
|
Furtado R, Lermen LN, Márquez R, Hartz SM. Neotropical dancing frog: the rich repertoire of visual displays in a hylodine species. J ETHOL 2019. [DOI: 10.1007/s10164-019-00600-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
|
18
|
Opportunity for female choice in the wild is frequently curtailed by low male trait variation in Hyla versicolor. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2019. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-019-2666-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/27/2022]
|
19
|
Ronald KL, Fernández-Juricic E, Lucas JR. Mate choice in the eye and ear of the beholder? Female multimodal sensory configuration influences her preferences. Proc Biol Sci 2019; 285:rspb.2018.0713. [PMID: 29769366 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2018.0713] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/29/2018] [Accepted: 04/16/2018] [Indexed: 01/27/2023] Open
Abstract
A common assumption in sexual selection studies is that receivers decode signal information similarly. However, receivers may vary in how they rank signallers if signal perception varies with an individual's sensory configuration. Furthermore, receivers may vary in their weighting of different elements of multimodal signals based on their sensory configuration. This could lead to complex levels of selection on signalling traits. We tested whether multimodal sensory configuration could affect preferences for multimodal signals. We used brown-headed cowbird (Molothrus ater) females to examine how auditory sensitivity and auditory filters, which influence auditory spectral and temporal resolution, affect song preferences, and how visual spatial resolution and visual temporal resolution, which influence resolution of a moving visual signal, affect visual display preferences. Our results show that multimodal sensory configuration significantly affects preferences for male displays: females with better auditory temporal resolution preferred songs that were shorter, with lower Wiener entropy, and higher frequency; and females with better visual temporal resolution preferred males with less intense visual displays. Our findings provide new insights into mate-choice decisions and receiver signal processing. Furthermore, our results challenge a long-standing assumption in animal communication which can affect how we address honest signalling, assortative mating and sensory drive.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Kelly L Ronald
- Department of Biology, Indiana University, Jordan Hall, 1001 E 3rd Street, Bloomington, IN 47405, USA .,Department of Biological Sciences, Purdue University, Lilly Hall, 915 West State Street, West Lafayette, IN 47907, USA
| | - Esteban Fernández-Juricic
- Department of Biology, Indiana University, Jordan Hall, 1001 E 3rd Street, Bloomington, IN 47405, USA
| | - Jeffrey R Lucas
- Department of Biology, Indiana University, Jordan Hall, 1001 E 3rd Street, Bloomington, IN 47405, USA
| |
Collapse
|
20
|
Neelon DP, Rodríguez RL, Höbel G. On the architecture of mate choice decisions: preference functions and choosiness are distinct traits. Proc Biol Sci 2019; 286:20182830. [PMID: 30963823 PMCID: PMC6408907 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2018.2830] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/12/2018] [Accepted: 01/31/2019] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Mate choice is an important cause of sexual selection; it can drive the evolution of extravagant ornaments and displays, and promote speciation through the reproductive isolation generated by rapid divergence of sexual traits. Understanding mate choice requires knowledge of the traits involved in generating mate-choice decisions, and how those traits may interact with each other. It has been proposed that mate-choice decisions are the outcome of two components that vary independently: the preference function (the ranking of the attractiveness of prospective mates) and choosiness (the effort invested in mate assessment). Here we test this hypothesis by examining individual variation in female preference functions and choosiness in green treefrogs ( Hyla cinerea). We show that measures describing preference functions and choosiness are not correlated. We also show that both components are influenced differently by variation in female body size, and that preference function shape (closed and preferring intermediate values or open-ended and preferring extremes) has a strong influence on this relationship: function traits are positively correlated with body size only for individuals with closed functions, while choosiness is positively correlated with body size for individuals with open functions, but negatively for those with closed functions.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Daniel P. Neelon
- Behavioral and Molecular Ecology Group, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee, 3209 N Maryland Ave., Milwaukee, WI 53211, USA
| | | | | |
Collapse
|
21
|
Underhill VA, Höbel G. Mate choice behavior of female Eastern Gray Treefrogs (Hyla versicolor) is robust to anthropogenic light pollution. Ethology 2018. [DOI: 10.1111/eth.12759] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/14/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Victoria A. Underhill
- Behavioral and Molecular Ecology Group; Department of Biological Sciences; University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee; Milwaukee Wisconsin
| | - Gerlinde Höbel
- Behavioral and Molecular Ecology Group; Department of Biological Sciences; University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee; Milwaukee Wisconsin
| |
Collapse
|
22
|
Reichert MS, Höbel G. Phenotypic integration and the evolution of signal repertoires: A case study of treefrog acoustic communication. Ecol Evol 2018; 8:3410-3429. [PMID: 29607035 PMCID: PMC5869261 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.3927] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/04/2017] [Revised: 01/15/2018] [Accepted: 01/23/2018] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Animal signals are inherently complex phenotypes with many interacting parts combining to elicit responses from receivers. The pattern of interrelationships between signal components reflects the extent to which each component is expressed, and responds to selection, either in concert with or independently of others. Furthermore, many species have complex repertoires consisting of multiple signal types used in different contexts, and common morphological and physiological constraints may result in interrelationships extending across the multiple signals in species' repertoires. The evolutionary significance of interrelationships between signal traits can be explored within the framework of phenotypic integration, which offers a suite of quantitative techniques to characterize complex phenotypes. In particular, these techniques allow for the assessment of modularity and integration, which describe, respectively, the extent to which sets of traits covary either independently or jointly. Although signal and repertoire complexity are thought to be major drivers of diversification and social evolution, few studies have explicitly measured the phenotypic integration of signals to investigate the evolution of diverse communication systems. We applied methods from phenotypic integration studies to quantify integration in the two primary vocalization types (advertisement and aggressive calls) in the treefrogs Hyla versicolor, Hyla cinerea, and Dendropsophus ebraccatus. We recorded male calls and calculated standardized phenotypic variance-covariance (P) matrices for characteristics within and across call types. We found significant integration across call types, but the strength of integration varied by species and corresponded with the acoustic similarity of the call types within each species. H. versicolor had the most modular advertisement and aggressive calls and the least acoustically similar call types. Additionally, P was robust to changing social competition levels in H. versicolor. Our findings suggest new directions in animal communication research in which the complex relationships among the traits of multiple signals are a key consideration for understanding signal evolution.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Michael S. Reichert
- School of Biological, Earth and Environmental SciencesUniversity College CorkCorkIreland
| | - Gerlinde Höbel
- Department of Biological SciencesUniversity of Wisconsin‐MilwaukeeMilwaukeeWIUSA
| |
Collapse
|
23
|
Underhill VA, Höbel G. Variation in nocturnal light levels does not alter mate choice behavior in female eastern gray treefrogs (Hyla versicolor). Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2017. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-017-2386-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
|
24
|
Ronald KL, Sesterhenn TM, Fernandez-Juricic E, Lucas JR. The sensory substrate of multimodal communication in brown-headed cowbirds: are females sensory 'specialists' or 'generalists'? J Comp Physiol A Neuroethol Sens Neural Behav Physiol 2017; 203:935-943. [PMID: 28819686 DOI: 10.1007/s00359-017-1203-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/11/2017] [Revised: 07/31/2017] [Accepted: 08/01/2017] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
Many animals communicate with multimodal signals. While we have an understanding of multimodal signal production, we know relatively less about receiver filtering of multimodal signals and whether filtering capacity in one modality influences filtering in a second modality. Most multimodal signals contain a temporal element, such as change in frequency over time or a dynamic visual display. We examined the relationship in temporal resolution across two modalities to test whether females are (1) sensory 'specialists', where a trade-off exists between the sensory modalities, (2) sensory 'generalists', where a positive relationship exists between the modalities, or (3) whether no relationship exists between modalities. We used female brown-headed cowbirds (Molothrus ater) to investigate this question as males court females with an audiovisual display. We found a significant positive relationship between female visual and auditory temporal resolution, suggesting that females are sensory 'generalists'. Females appear to resolve information well across multiple modalities, which may select for males that signal their quality similarly across modalities.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Kelly L Ronald
- Purdue University, 915 West State Street, West Lafayette, IN, USA. .,Indiana University, 1001 East 3rd Street, Bloomington, IN, USA.
| | - Timothy M Sesterhenn
- Purdue University, 915 West State Street, West Lafayette, IN, USA.,Morningside College, 1501 Morningside Avenue, Sioux City, IA, USA
| | | | - Jeffrey R Lucas
- Purdue University, 915 West State Street, West Lafayette, IN, USA
| |
Collapse
|
25
|
Johnson S, Candolin U. Predation cost of a sexual signal in the threespine stickleback. Behav Ecol 2017. [DOI: 10.1093/beheco/arx080] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
|
26
|
Reichert MS, Höbel G. Frequency channel-dependent selectivity for temporal call characteristics in gray treefrogs, Hyla versicolor. J Exp Biol 2017; 220:1256-1266. [PMID: 28104800 DOI: 10.1242/jeb.152330] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/31/2016] [Accepted: 01/11/2017] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
Sensory receptors transmit information on multiple stimulus dimensions. Much remains to be understood about how the processing of different signal characteristics is partitioned and integrated in different areas of the nervous system. Amphibian hearing involves two morphologically distinct inner-ear organs that process different components of the frequency spectrum. Many anuran signals contain two frequency peaks, each one matching the sensitivity of one of these two organs. We hypothesized that the processing of temporal characteristics of acoustic signals would differ in these two frequency channels, perhaps because of differences in the response properties of the two inner-ear organs. We tested this hypothesis in the gray treefrog, Hyla versicolor; male advertisement calls of this species contain a bimodal frequency spectrum. We generated synthetic male advertisement calls in which we independently manipulated the pattern of amplitude modulation in the low-frequency peak or the high-frequency peak and measured the attractiveness of these stimuli to females in single-speaker and two-speaker phonotaxis tests. We obtained multiple lines of evidence that females were more selective for fine-temporal characteristics in the high-frequency peak. We discuss the potential implications of frequency channel-dependent temporal processing for signal evolution and suggest that additional neurophysiological investigations of the anuran auditory periphery will give important insights into how the nervous system partitions the encoding of multiple characteristics of complex signals.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Michael S Reichert
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Wisconsin, 3209 N. Maryland Avenue, Milwaukee, WI 53201, USA
| | - Gerlinde Höbel
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Wisconsin, 3209 N. Maryland Avenue, Milwaukee, WI 53201, USA
| |
Collapse
|
27
|
Ronald KL, Zeng R, White DJ, Fernández-Juricic E, Lucas JR. What makes a multimodal signal attractive? A preference function approach. Behav Ecol 2017. [DOI: 10.1093/beheco/arx015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/15/2023] Open
|
28
|
The effects of experience with different courtship modalities on unimodal and multimodal preferences in a wolf spider. Anim Behav 2017. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2016.10.033] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
|
29
|
Furtado R, Márquez R, Hartz SM. In front of a mirror: visual displays may not be aggressive signals in nocturnal tree frogs. J NAT HIST 2016. [DOI: 10.1080/00222933.2016.1262078] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Raíssa Furtado
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ecologia, Departamento de Ecologia, Instituto de Biociências, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Brazil
| | - Rafael Márquez
- Fonoteca Zoológica, Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Evolutiva, Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales, CSIC, Madrid, Spain
| | - Sandra Maria Hartz
- Departamento de Ecologia, Instituto de Biociências, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Brazil
| |
Collapse
|
30
|
Reichert MS, Symes LB, Höbel G. Lighting up sound preferences: cross-modal influences on the precedence effect in treefrogs. Anim Behav 2016. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2016.07.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/25/2022]
|
31
|
Pascoal S, Mendrok M, Mitchell C, Wilson AJ, Hunt J, Bailey NW. Sexual selection and population divergence I: The influence of socially flexible cuticular hydrocarbon expression in male field crickets (Teleogryllus oceanicus). Evolution 2016; 70:82-97. [PMID: 26678168 DOI: 10.1111/evo.12839] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/25/2015] [Revised: 11/20/2015] [Accepted: 11/21/2015] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Debates about how coevolution of sexual traits and preferences might promote evolutionary diversification have permeated speciation research for over a century. Recent work demonstrates that the expression of such traits can be sensitive to variation in the social environment. Here, we examined social flexibility in a sexually selected male trait-cuticular hydrocarbon (CHC) profiles-in the field cricket Teleogryllus oceanicus and tested whether population genetic divergence predicts the extent or direction of social flexibility in allopatric populations. We manipulated male crickets' social environments during rearing and then characterized CHC profiles. CHC signatures varied considerably across populations and also in response to the social environment, but our prediction that increased social flexibility would be selected in more recently founded populations exposed to fluctuating demographic environments was unsupported. Furthermore, models examining the influence of drift and selection failed to support a role of sexual selection in driving population divergence in CHC profiles. Variation in social environments might alter the dynamics of sexual selection, but our results align with theoretical predictions that the role social flexibility plays in modulating evolutionary divergence depends critically on whether responses to variation in the social environment are homogeneous across populations, or whether gene by social environment interactions occur.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Sonia Pascoal
- Centre for Biological Diversity, University of St Andrews, St Andrews, Fife KY16 9TH, United Kingdom
| | - Magdalena Mendrok
- Institute of Environmental Sciences, Jagellonian University, Gronostajova 7, Kraków, 30-387, Poland
| | - Christopher Mitchell
- Hawkesbury Institute for the Environment, University of Western Sydney, Penrith, NSW, 2751, Australia.,Centre for Ecology and Conservation, College of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Exeter, Cornwall Campus, Cornwall, TR10 9EZ, United Kingdom
| | - Alastair J Wilson
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, College of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Exeter, Cornwall Campus, Cornwall, TR10 9EZ, United Kingdom
| | - John Hunt
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, College of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Exeter, Cornwall Campus, Cornwall, TR10 9EZ, United Kingdom
| | - Nathan W Bailey
- Centre for Biological Diversity, University of St Andrews, St Andrews, Fife KY16 9TH, United Kingdom.
| |
Collapse
|