Stereotypy and variation of the mating call in the Lusitanian toadfish, <Emphasis Type="Italic">Halobatrachus didactylus</Emphasis> |
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Authors: | Maria Clara P Amorim José Miguel Simões Vitor C Almada Paulo J Fonseca |
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Institution: | 1.Unidade de Investiga??o em Eco-Etologia,Instituto Superior de Psicologia Aplicada,Lisbon,Portugal;2.Departamento de Biologia Animal e Centro de Biologia Ambiental,Faculdade de Ciências da Universidade de Lisboa,Lisbon,Portugal |
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Abstract: | Signal attributes should show different degrees of variability depending on the information to be conveyed. Species identity
is usually associated with stereotyped features of a signal, whereas other types of information such as individual quality
and motivation are associated with signal plasticity. Lusitanian toadfish males form aggregations during the breeding season
and emit a tonal advertisement call (the boatwhistle) to attract mates to their nests. We test the hypothesis that the boatwhistle
can convey information both on individual identity and motivation by checking how signal parameters vary with time. We study
how the physical (tide level) and social (calling alone or in a chorus) environments and male calling rate affect this advertisement
signal and how all these external and internal factors (environment, social and male motivation) blend to modulate the Lusitanian
toadfish’s advertisement call. Boatwhistles of each male were very stereotyped in short periods of time (minutes), but intra-male
signal variability greatly increased in a longer time scale (days). Nevertheless, significant differences among males could
still be found even in a long time scale. Pulse period was the acoustic feature that most contributed to discriminate among
males. Tide level and male calling rate modulated boatwhistle characteristics, and there was a differential effect of tide
on call attributes depending on male calling rate. Social acoustic environment only affected calling rate. These results suggest
that inter-individual differences in call characteristics and call plasticity may mediate both male–male assessment and mate
choice. |
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