Presentation Type
Presentation
Faculty Mentor’s Full Name
Erick Greene
Faculty Mentor’s Department
Biology
Abstract / Artist's Statement
Chickadees and nuthatches are known for their ability to avoid predation through complex alarm calls and communication between species within a flock. Very little is known about their ability to listen to and understand alarm calls of other birds with whom they do not usually associate. My research explores the interspecific listening abilities of chickadees and nuthatches, and specifically if they use Townsend’s solitaires and downy woodpeckers as sentinel species. I conducted experimental call playback experiments at bird feeders in western Montana. I played three different acoustic stimuli on a speaker to mixed-species flocks composed mainly of various species of chickadees and nuthatches. I recorded their vocal responses, as well as changes in their behavior. The acoustic stimuli includes the Townsend’s solitaire song, Townsend’s solitaire “toot” call (an alarm call), and a downy woodpecker “pik” call (a possible alarm call). Results indicate that chickadees and nuthatches can use the calls of other species: specifically, they respond to the songs of Townsend solitaires as “all clear” signals; they interpret the alarm calls of Townsend solitaires and downy woodpeckers as if there were predators nearby. Chickadees and nuthatches have arguably one of the most advanced communication systems in the animal kingdom. My research is the next step in the advancement of our understanding of the avian soundscape in Montana and across North America.
Category
Life Sciences
Distant Early Warning in Alarm Responses in Chickadees and Nuthatches – Do birds use their avian neighbors as sentinels?
Chickadees and nuthatches are known for their ability to avoid predation through complex alarm calls and communication between species within a flock. Very little is known about their ability to listen to and understand alarm calls of other birds with whom they do not usually associate. My research explores the interspecific listening abilities of chickadees and nuthatches, and specifically if they use Townsend’s solitaires and downy woodpeckers as sentinel species. I conducted experimental call playback experiments at bird feeders in western Montana. I played three different acoustic stimuli on a speaker to mixed-species flocks composed mainly of various species of chickadees and nuthatches. I recorded their vocal responses, as well as changes in their behavior. The acoustic stimuli includes the Townsend’s solitaire song, Townsend’s solitaire “toot” call (an alarm call), and a downy woodpecker “pik” call (a possible alarm call). Results indicate that chickadees and nuthatches can use the calls of other species: specifically, they respond to the songs of Townsend solitaires as “all clear” signals; they interpret the alarm calls of Townsend solitaires and downy woodpeckers as if there were predators nearby. Chickadees and nuthatches have arguably one of the most advanced communication systems in the animal kingdom. My research is the next step in the advancement of our understanding of the avian soundscape in Montana and across North America.