Abstract
Source–filter coupling is the rarest acoustic phenomenon not only in Iberian red deer, but in any mammal. In most mammals, sound production can be well described in the framework of source–filter theory. The vocal output is the result of combined work of the larynx (the source) and of the supralaryngeal vocal tract (the filter). The source–filter theory suggests the independence of source and filter. Thus, vocal tract filtering should not affect the fundamental frequency (f0) of the sound created in the larynx. Spectrographically, the source is mostly characterized by the f0 and its harmonics, while the filter by the vocal tract resonances, i.e., formant frequencies. Nevertheless, a non-independent (coupled) source and filter can be proposed when the vocal folds start oscillating at one of the formant frequencies. Coupling between source and filter has been found in human singers and predicted for red deer Cervus elaphus by a computer modeling approach. This study describes different modes of phonation in a natural bout of rutting calls of Iberian red deer Cervus elaphus hispanicus and the transition from a chaotic mode to a probable source–filter coupling mode. This phenomenon might be involved in the production of extremely high-frequency bugles of North American and Asian subspecies of C. elaphus.
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Acknowledgments
We would like to thank David Reby, Tobias Riede, and Hansjoerg Kunc for discussion and Robert Huber and the two anonymous reviewers for their kind and instructive comments. During our work, we adhered to the “Guidelines for the treatment of animals in behavioural research and teaching” (Anim. Behav., 2006, 71, 245–253) and to the laws of Spain, Germany, and the Russian Federation, the countries where the research was conducted. This study was supported by the Russian Foundation for Basic Research, grant 12-04-00260 (for IV and EV) and Spanish projects CGL2007-63594 and CGL2010-17163 (for JC and JT).
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Volodin, I., Volodina, E., Frey, R. et al. Spectrographic analysis points to source–filter coupling in rutting roars of Iberian red deer. acta ethol 16, 57–63 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10211-012-0133-1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10211-012-0133-1