Male bird song attracts females — a field experiment
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Summary
The initial stage of pair formation of the pied and the collared flycatcher (Ficedula hypoleuca and F. albicollis) was simulated in a field experiment. Male dummies positioned near nest boxes and “singing” by means of tape-recorded song from loudspeakers offered prospecting females a nest box combined with an automatic trap. An unequivocal demonstration of female arrival at the male's territory was obtained by the trapping of the female. Control nest-box traps were provided with silent dummies. Factors other than male song causing female attraction were controlled by a daily switch of the position of “singing” and silent dummies. Nine out of ten females were caught in nest-box traps with “singing” dummies (one-tailed binomial test, P=0.011). The result supports the hypothesis that male song functions in mate attraction. This hypothesis has never previously been tested in field experiments although circumstantial evidence for it has been available.
Keywords
Field Experiment Circumstantial Evidence Binomial Test Pair Formation Male SongPreview
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