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Ultrasonic communication in concave-eared torrent frogs (Amolops tormotus)

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Abstract

The concave-eared torrent frogs (Amolops tormotus) have highly unusual ear morphology—in males the eardrums are embedded deep inside ear cavities. In collaboration with our colleagues we investigated the functional significance of this morphological feature in hearing. Sound recordings in the field showed that males of A. tormotus produce diverse bird-like melodic calls with pronounced frequency modulations and non-linear phenomena (e.g., frequency jumps, different orders of subharmonics, and chaos) that often contain spectral energy in the ultrasonic range. The audible as well as the ultrasonic components of the species call could effectively evoke males’ vocal responses, demonstrating that they can hear and respond to ultrasound. Electrophysiological recordings from the auditory midbrain confirmed the ultrasonic hearing capacity of these frogs. The recessed tympana and extremely thin tympanic membranes are adaptations for hearing ultrasound—this sensitivity may have evolved in response to the intense, predominately low-frequency ambient noise from local streams. Finally, results from the isolated laryngeal preparation in euthanized frogs revealed that the origin of call complexity and diversity lies with having a vocal system with nonlinear properties.

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Abbreviations

AEP:

Average evoked potential

AUD:

Audible components

CF:

Constant-frequency

FM:

Frequency-modulated

SPL:

Sound pressure level

US:

Ultrasonic components

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Acknowledgments

The Chinese Academy of Science sponsored the fieldwork. This research involved extensive collaborations with Annette Denzinger, Wenyu Lin, Qiang Qiu, Hans-Ulrich Schnitzler, Roderick Suthers, Zhimin Xu, Zulin Yu, and foremost Chun-He Xu and Jun-Xian Shen. Kraig Adler informed us of the unusual auditory apparatus of this species. Professor Chen-Me Tsai, Qilin Chen, Weng Jun, Yong Yu, Xinjian Yu, and Yunglung Zhou provided invaluable assistance with the fieldwork. The research is supported by grants from the National Institute for Deafness and Other Communication Disorders of the NIH (R01DC04998 to ASF and R01DC00222 to PMN) and a grant of the National Science Foundation (CNCRS-0422073) to ASF.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Molecular and Integrative Physiology, and Beckman Institute, University of Illinois, Urbana, IL, 61801, USA

    Albert S. Feng

  2. Departments of Physiological Science and of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California at Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, 90095, USA

    Peter M. Narins

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  1. Albert S. Feng
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  2. Peter M. Narins
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Correspondence to Albert S. Feng.

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A manuscript for a special issue of JCP-A, Comparative Neurobiology: Papers in memory of Theodore H. Bullock.

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Feng, A.S., Narins, P.M. Ultrasonic communication in concave-eared torrent frogs (Amolops tormotus). J Comp Physiol A 194, 159–167 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00359-007-0267-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00359-007-0267-1

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