Abstract
During courtship, male red-winged blackbirds (Agelaius phoeniceus) produce long sequences of simple, single-note precopulatory calls, punctuated with occasional songs. Male song has previously been shown to stimulate copulation solicitation in captive, estradiol-implanted females of this species (Searcy and Brenowitz 1988; Searcy, in press). Here I show that sequences of precopulatory calls also stimulate copulation solicitation in female redwings, but that they are not as stimulatory as song. In tests contrasting mixed bouts of song and precopulatory calls with bouts of song alone, the mixed bouts elicited significantly more female solicitation in one instance, more but not significantly more in a second, and an exactly equal amount as song alone in a third. Neither song nor precopulatory calls could be shown to affect proximity of females to the speaker.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 325-331 |
| Number of pages | 7 |
| Journal | Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology |
| Volume | 24 |
| Issue number | 5 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - May 1 1989 |
| Externally published | Yes |
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ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Behavioral Neuroscience
- Ecology
- Animal Science and Zoology
Cite this
Function of male courtship vocalizations in red-winged blackbirds. / Searcy, William.
In: Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology, Vol. 24, No. 5, 01.05.1989, p. 325-331.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article
}
TY - JOUR
T1 - Function of male courtship vocalizations in red-winged blackbirds
AU - Searcy, William
PY - 1989/5/1
Y1 - 1989/5/1
N2 - During courtship, male red-winged blackbirds (Agelaius phoeniceus) produce long sequences of simple, single-note precopulatory calls, punctuated with occasional songs. Male song has previously been shown to stimulate copulation solicitation in captive, estradiol-implanted females of this species (Searcy and Brenowitz 1988; Searcy, in press). Here I show that sequences of precopulatory calls also stimulate copulation solicitation in female redwings, but that they are not as stimulatory as song. In tests contrasting mixed bouts of song and precopulatory calls with bouts of song alone, the mixed bouts elicited significantly more female solicitation in one instance, more but not significantly more in a second, and an exactly equal amount as song alone in a third. Neither song nor precopulatory calls could be shown to affect proximity of females to the speaker.
AB - During courtship, male red-winged blackbirds (Agelaius phoeniceus) produce long sequences of simple, single-note precopulatory calls, punctuated with occasional songs. Male song has previously been shown to stimulate copulation solicitation in captive, estradiol-implanted females of this species (Searcy and Brenowitz 1988; Searcy, in press). Here I show that sequences of precopulatory calls also stimulate copulation solicitation in female redwings, but that they are not as stimulatory as song. In tests contrasting mixed bouts of song and precopulatory calls with bouts of song alone, the mixed bouts elicited significantly more female solicitation in one instance, more but not significantly more in a second, and an exactly equal amount as song alone in a third. Neither song nor precopulatory calls could be shown to affect proximity of females to the speaker.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=0024940391&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=0024940391&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1007/BF00290909
DO - 10.1007/BF00290909
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:0024940391
VL - 24
SP - 325
EP - 331
JO - Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology
JF - Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology
SN - 0340-5443
IS - 5
ER -