Two sympatric species of passerine birds imitate the same raptor calls in alarm contexts |
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Authors: | Chaminda P Ratnayake Eben Goodale Sarath W Kotagama |
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Institution: | (1) Field Ornithology Group of Sri Lanka, Department of Zoology, Faculty of Science, University of Colombo, Colombo, 3, Sri Lanka |
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Abstract: | While some avian mimics appear to select sounds randomly, other species preferentially imitate sounds such as predator calls
that are associated with danger. Previous work has shown that the Greater Racket-tailed Drongo (Dicrurus paradiseus) incorporates predator calls and heterospecific alarm calls into its own species-typical alarm vocalizations. Here, we show
that another passerine species, the Sri Lanka Magpie (Urocissa ornata), which inhabits the same Sri Lankan rainforest, imitates three of the same predator calls that drongos do. For two of these
call types, there is evidence that magpies also use them in alarm contexts. Our results support the hypothesis that imitated
predator calls can serve as signals of alarm to multiple species. |
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