Acoustic sensory bias

The occurrence of latent pre-existing preferences for particular signal features may influence the evolution of animal communication. The sensory biases may originate from the tuning of sensory systems for other functions like predation, or emergent properties of the nervous system. However,  an apparent bias may for a trait in an extant species who does nots express this trait may also be be explained by the occurrence of this trait in the repertoire was of an ancestral species. We investigated the presence of an acoustic sensory bias for song trill in Streptopelia doves, and whether the bias was restricted to females (sexual function of song) or also present in males (territorial function of song).

Related publications

• Secondi J., den Hartog P.M., ten Cate C. 2003 To trill or not to trill? Territorial response to a heterospecific vocal trait in male collared doves, Streptopelia decaocto. Behavioral Ecology 14, 694-701.
• Secondi J., De Bakker M.A.G., Ten Cate C. 2002 Female responses to male coos in the collared dove Streptopelia decaocto. Behaviour 139, 1287-1302.