Dawn singing behavior of a tropical bird species, the Pied Bush Chat Saxicola caprata
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Abstract
This paper aims to study the structure and pattern of dawn song in a tropical avian species, the Pied Bush Chat (Saxicola caprata) in Haridwar (290 55’ N, 780 08’ E; Uttarakhand, India) in 2009. Males delivered complex dawn chorus on daily basis during only breeding season (February to July). The dawn song bout was made up of a number of distinct sections called song types. Each song type consisted of a series of similar or dissimilar units referred to as elements. Song type length averaged 1.43±0.23 sec and did not differ significantly among males. The
average number and types of elements in a song type were observed 8.15±1.64 and 8.01±1.56, respectively.In more than 80% of observations, song types were delivered with immediate variety and males did not follow any definite sequential pattern of song delivery. Males sang continuously for about 30 min at high rates during dawn. Males performed continuous dawn singing throughout the breeding season and seemed to interact vocally through counter-singing for extended period. Observations suggest that dawn song delivery in Pied Bush Chat plays an important role in maintenance and adjustment of social relationship among neighbouring males.
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Keywords
Dawn song, Pied Bush Chat, Saxicola caprata, Song characteristics, Song rate
References
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Bell H.L., Swainson, G.W. (1985). The colonization, ecology and breeding of the pied stonechat Saxicola caprata at Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea. Ibis, 127: 74–83.
Bhatt, D., Kumar, A., Singh, Y. and Payne, R.B. (2000). Territorial songs and calls in Oriental Magpie Robin Copsychus saularis. Current Science, 78: 722-728.
Borror, D.J. (1987). Song in the White-eyed Vireo. Wilson Bulletin, 99: 377-397.
Borror, D.J. and Reese, C.R. (1956). Vocal gymnastics in Wood Thrush songs. Ohio Journal of Science, 56: 177-182.
Brown, T.J. and Handford, P. (2003). Why birds sing at dawn: the role of consistent song transmission. Ibis, 145: 120-129.
Catchpole, C.K. (1986). Song repertoires and reproductive success in the great reed warbler Acrocephalus arundinaceus. Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology, 19: 439-445.
Catchpole, C.K. and Slater, P.J.B. (1995). Bird song: biological themes and variations. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.
Dabelsteen, T. and Pedersen, S.B. (1992). Song features essential for species discrimination and behaviour assessment by male blackbirds (Turdus merula). Behaviour, 121: 259-287.
Eens, M., Pinxteen, R. and Verheyen, R.F. (1989). Temporal and sequential organization of song bouts in the Starling. Ardea, 77: 75-86.
Foerster, K. (2002). Extra-pair paternity in the blue tit Parus caeruleus. Doctoral thesis, Zoological Institute, University of Vienna, Vienna.
Forslund, P. and Part, T. (1995). Age and reproduction in birds – hypotheses and tests. Trends in Ecology and Evolution, 10: 374—378.
Garamszegi, L.Z., Heylen, D., Møller, A.P., Eens, M. and de Lope, F. (2005). Age dependent health status and song characteristics in the barn swallow. Behavioral Ecology, 16: 580-591.
Gentner, T.Q. and Hulse, S.H. (2000). Female European Starling preference and choice for variation in conspecific male song. Animal Behavior, 59: 443-458.
Godfrey, J.D. and Bryant, D.M. (2000). State-dependent behaviour and energy expenditure: an experimental study of European robins on winter territories. Journal of Animal Ecology, 69: 301–313.
Gottfried, B.M., Andrews, K. and Haug, M. (1985). Breeding robins and nest predators: Effect of predator types and defense strategy on initial vocalization patterns. Wilson Bulletin, 97: 183-190.
Gottlander, K. (1987). Variation in the song rate of the male Pied Flycatcher (Ficedula hypoleuca): Causes and consequences. Animal Behavior, 35: 1037-1043.
Hartshorne, C. (1973). Born to sing. Indiana University Press, Bloomington.
Johnstone, R.A. (1995). Sexual selection, honest advertisement and the handicap principle: Reviewing the evidence. Biology Review, 70: 1-65.
Kempenaers, B., Verheyen, G.R. and Dhondt, A.A. (1997). Extrapair paternity in the blue tit Parus caeruleus: Female choice, male characteristics, and offspring quality. Behavioural Ecology, 8: 481–492.
Lambrechts, M.M. and Dhondt, A.A. (1986). Male quality, reproduction and survival in the great tit (Parus major). Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology, 19: 57-63.
Lein, M.R. (2007). Patterns of dawn singing by Buff-breasted Flycatchers. Journal of Field Ornithology, 78: 343-351.
Liu, W.C. (2004). The effect of neighbors and females on dawn and daytime singing behaviors by male chipping sparrows. Animal Behavior, 68: 39-44.
McGregor, P.K. (1991). The singer and the song: On the receiving end of bird song. Biology Review, 66: 57–81.
McGregor, P.K. (1993). Signalling in territorial systems: a context for individual identification, ranging and eavesdropping. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London, Series B, 338: 1-8.
Morton, E.S. (1996). A comparison of vocal behavior among tropical and temperate passerine birds. In: D.E. Kroodsma and E.H. Miller (Eds.), Ecology and evolution of acoustic communication in birds (pp 258-268), New York: Comstock Press.
Nolan, P.M. and Hill, G.E. (2004). Female choice for song characteristics in the House Finch. Animal Behavior, 67: 403-410.
Otter, K., Chruszcz, B. and Ratcliffe, L. (1997). Honest advertisement and song output during the dawn chorus of black-capped chickadees. Behavioral Ecology, 8: 167–173.
Poesel, A., Dabelsteen, T. and Pedersen S.B. (2004). Dawn song of male blue tits as a predictor of competitiveness in midmorning singing interactions. Acta Ethologica, 6: 65-71.
Saino, N., Galeotti, P., Sacchi, R. and Møller, A.P. (2003). Humoral immune response in relation to senescence, sex, and sexual ornamentation in the barn swallow (Hirundo rustica). Journal of Evolutionary Biology, 16: 1127-1134.
Sethi, V.K. and Bhatt, D. (2008). Call repertoire of an endemic avian species, the Indian Chat Cercomela fusca. Current Science, 94: 1173-1179.
Sethi, V.K., Bhatt, D. and Kumar, A. (2011a). The effect of mate removal on dawn singing behaviour in male pied bush chats. Current Zoology, 57: 72-76.
Sethi, V.K., Bhatt, D. and Kumar, A. (2011b). Song repertoire size of the Pied Bushchat Saxicola caprata. Current Science, 100: 302-304.
Slater, P.J.B. (2003). Fifty years of bird song research: a case study in animal behaviour. Animal Behaviour, 65: 633-639.
Slater, P.J.B. and Mann, N.I. (2004). Why do the females of many bird species sing in the tropics? Journal of Avian Biology, 35: 1-6.
Smith, W.J. (1997). The behavior of communicating, after twenty years. In: D.H. Owings, M.D. Beecher and N.S. Thompson (Eds.), Perspectives in Ethology (pp 1-23), New York: Plenum Press.
Specht, R. (2002). Avisoft-SASLab Pro Sound Analysis and Synthesis Laboratory (a PC- software). Avisoft Bioacoustics (http://www.avisoft.com), Berlin.
Staicer, C.A., Spector, D.A. and Horn, A.G. (1996). The dawn chorus and other diel patterns in acoustic signaling. In: D.E. Kroodsma and E.H. Miller (Eds.), Ecology and evolution of acoustic communication in birds (pp 426-453), New York: Cornell University Press.
Todt, D. and Naguib, M. (2000). Vocal interactions in birds: the use of song as a model in communication. Advance Studies in Behavior, 29: 247-296.
Vallet, E. and Kreutzer, M. (1995). Female canaries are sexually responsive to special song phrases. Animal Behaviour, 49: 1603-1619.
Vivaldi, M.M., Palomino, J.J. and Soler, M. (2004). Strophe length in spontaneous songs predicts male response to playback in the Hoopoe Upupa epops. Ethology, 110: 351-362.
Welling, P., Koivula, K. and Lathi, K. (1995). The dawn chorus is linked with female fertility in the willow tit Parus montanus. Journal of Avian Biology, 26: 241–246.
Zar, J.H. (1999). Biostatistical Analysis. Prentice-Hall, New Jersey.
Bell H.L., Swainson, G.W. (1985). The colonization, ecology and breeding of the pied stonechat Saxicola caprata at Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea. Ibis, 127: 74–83.
Bhatt, D., Kumar, A., Singh, Y. and Payne, R.B. (2000). Territorial songs and calls in Oriental Magpie Robin Copsychus saularis. Current Science, 78: 722-728.
Borror, D.J. (1987). Song in the White-eyed Vireo. Wilson Bulletin, 99: 377-397.
Borror, D.J. and Reese, C.R. (1956). Vocal gymnastics in Wood Thrush songs. Ohio Journal of Science, 56: 177-182.
Brown, T.J. and Handford, P. (2003). Why birds sing at dawn: the role of consistent song transmission. Ibis, 145: 120-129.
Catchpole, C.K. (1986). Song repertoires and reproductive success in the great reed warbler Acrocephalus arundinaceus. Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology, 19: 439-445.
Catchpole, C.K. and Slater, P.J.B. (1995). Bird song: biological themes and variations. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.
Dabelsteen, T. and Pedersen, S.B. (1992). Song features essential for species discrimination and behaviour assessment by male blackbirds (Turdus merula). Behaviour, 121: 259-287.
Eens, M., Pinxteen, R. and Verheyen, R.F. (1989). Temporal and sequential organization of song bouts in the Starling. Ardea, 77: 75-86.
Foerster, K. (2002). Extra-pair paternity in the blue tit Parus caeruleus. Doctoral thesis, Zoological Institute, University of Vienna, Vienna.
Forslund, P. and Part, T. (1995). Age and reproduction in birds – hypotheses and tests. Trends in Ecology and Evolution, 10: 374—378.
Garamszegi, L.Z., Heylen, D., Møller, A.P., Eens, M. and de Lope, F. (2005). Age dependent health status and song characteristics in the barn swallow. Behavioral Ecology, 16: 580-591.
Gentner, T.Q. and Hulse, S.H. (2000). Female European Starling preference and choice for variation in conspecific male song. Animal Behavior, 59: 443-458.
Godfrey, J.D. and Bryant, D.M. (2000). State-dependent behaviour and energy expenditure: an experimental study of European robins on winter territories. Journal of Animal Ecology, 69: 301–313.
Gottfried, B.M., Andrews, K. and Haug, M. (1985). Breeding robins and nest predators: Effect of predator types and defense strategy on initial vocalization patterns. Wilson Bulletin, 97: 183-190.
Gottlander, K. (1987). Variation in the song rate of the male Pied Flycatcher (Ficedula hypoleuca): Causes and consequences. Animal Behavior, 35: 1037-1043.
Hartshorne, C. (1973). Born to sing. Indiana University Press, Bloomington.
Johnstone, R.A. (1995). Sexual selection, honest advertisement and the handicap principle: Reviewing the evidence. Biology Review, 70: 1-65.
Kempenaers, B., Verheyen, G.R. and Dhondt, A.A. (1997). Extrapair paternity in the blue tit Parus caeruleus: Female choice, male characteristics, and offspring quality. Behavioural Ecology, 8: 481–492.
Lambrechts, M.M. and Dhondt, A.A. (1986). Male quality, reproduction and survival in the great tit (Parus major). Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology, 19: 57-63.
Lein, M.R. (2007). Patterns of dawn singing by Buff-breasted Flycatchers. Journal of Field Ornithology, 78: 343-351.
Liu, W.C. (2004). The effect of neighbors and females on dawn and daytime singing behaviors by male chipping sparrows. Animal Behavior, 68: 39-44.
McGregor, P.K. (1991). The singer and the song: On the receiving end of bird song. Biology Review, 66: 57–81.
McGregor, P.K. (1993). Signalling in territorial systems: a context for individual identification, ranging and eavesdropping. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London, Series B, 338: 1-8.
Morton, E.S. (1996). A comparison of vocal behavior among tropical and temperate passerine birds. In: D.E. Kroodsma and E.H. Miller (Eds.), Ecology and evolution of acoustic communication in birds (pp 258-268), New York: Comstock Press.
Nolan, P.M. and Hill, G.E. (2004). Female choice for song characteristics in the House Finch. Animal Behavior, 67: 403-410.
Otter, K., Chruszcz, B. and Ratcliffe, L. (1997). Honest advertisement and song output during the dawn chorus of black-capped chickadees. Behavioral Ecology, 8: 167–173.
Poesel, A., Dabelsteen, T. and Pedersen S.B. (2004). Dawn song of male blue tits as a predictor of competitiveness in midmorning singing interactions. Acta Ethologica, 6: 65-71.
Saino, N., Galeotti, P., Sacchi, R. and Møller, A.P. (2003). Humoral immune response in relation to senescence, sex, and sexual ornamentation in the barn swallow (Hirundo rustica). Journal of Evolutionary Biology, 16: 1127-1134.
Sethi, V.K. and Bhatt, D. (2008). Call repertoire of an endemic avian species, the Indian Chat Cercomela fusca. Current Science, 94: 1173-1179.
Sethi, V.K., Bhatt, D. and Kumar, A. (2011a). The effect of mate removal on dawn singing behaviour in male pied bush chats. Current Zoology, 57: 72-76.
Sethi, V.K., Bhatt, D. and Kumar, A. (2011b). Song repertoire size of the Pied Bushchat Saxicola caprata. Current Science, 100: 302-304.
Slater, P.J.B. (2003). Fifty years of bird song research: a case study in animal behaviour. Animal Behaviour, 65: 633-639.
Slater, P.J.B. and Mann, N.I. (2004). Why do the females of many bird species sing in the tropics? Journal of Avian Biology, 35: 1-6.
Smith, W.J. (1997). The behavior of communicating, after twenty years. In: D.H. Owings, M.D. Beecher and N.S. Thompson (Eds.), Perspectives in Ethology (pp 1-23), New York: Plenum Press.
Specht, R. (2002). Avisoft-SASLab Pro Sound Analysis and Synthesis Laboratory (a PC- software). Avisoft Bioacoustics (http://www.avisoft.com), Berlin.
Staicer, C.A., Spector, D.A. and Horn, A.G. (1996). The dawn chorus and other diel patterns in acoustic signaling. In: D.E. Kroodsma and E.H. Miller (Eds.), Ecology and evolution of acoustic communication in birds (pp 426-453), New York: Cornell University Press.
Todt, D. and Naguib, M. (2000). Vocal interactions in birds: the use of song as a model in communication. Advance Studies in Behavior, 29: 247-296.
Vallet, E. and Kreutzer, M. (1995). Female canaries are sexually responsive to special song phrases. Animal Behaviour, 49: 1603-1619.
Vivaldi, M.M., Palomino, J.J. and Soler, M. (2004). Strophe length in spontaneous songs predicts male response to playback in the Hoopoe Upupa epops. Ethology, 110: 351-362.
Welling, P., Koivula, K. and Lathi, K. (1995). The dawn chorus is linked with female fertility in the willow tit Parus montanus. Journal of Avian Biology, 26: 241–246.
Zar, J.H. (1999). Biostatistical Analysis. Prentice-Hall, New Jersey.
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How to Cite
Dawn singing behavior of a tropical bird species, the Pied Bush Chat Saxicola caprata. (2012). Journal of Applied and Natural Science, 4(2), 241-246. https://doi.org/10.31018/jans.v4i2.257
