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Anuran Acoustic Signal Production in Noisy Environments

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Animal Communication and Noise

Part of the book series: Animal Signals and Communication ((ANISIGCOM,volume 2))

Abstract

Where they co-occur, male anurans of different species may signal from diverse locations and use vocalizations that differ spectrally. However, the relevance of such differences to the problem of signal masking, as well as their ubiquity and efficacy, may have been over-emphasized, especially given data from recent studies. Of greater significance are adjustments in signal timing, operating both within and among species, which can result in alternation of calling bouts or even rapid-fire alternation of notes among neighboring males. The possibility that frogs elevate call amplitude in response to noise deserves further study. Also requiring more research are the contributions to communication of seismic and ultrasonic signaling, employed in the presence of interfering biotic and abiotic noise, respectively, as well as the role played by signal redundancy to improved information transfer in loud choruses. Whether anthropogenic noise constitutes a significant threat to anurans remains an unresolved question.

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Acknowledgments

We are especially grateful to Kentwood Wells and Henrik Brumm for comments on the manuscript. Some of the material described in this review was based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation (under Grant Nos. 0342183 and 9727623), Pace University Scholarly Research Awards and Smithsonian Institution Short-Term Visitor Awards to JJS. Work by MAB was supported by the National Science Foundation (under Grant No. 0842759), the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (under Grant Nos. R03DC009582 and 5R01DC009582), and a Grant-in-Aid from the University of Minnesota Graduate School.

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  1. Department of Biology, Pace University, Pleasantville, NY, USA

    Joshua J. Schwartz

  2. Department of Ecology, Evolution and Behavior, University of Minnesota, Saint Paul, MN, 55108, USA

    Mark A. Bee

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Correspondence to Joshua J. Schwartz .

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  1. Communication and Social Behaviour Group, Max Planck Institute for Ornithology, Seewiesen, Germany

    Henrik Brumm

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Schwartz, J.J., Bee, M.A. (2013). Anuran Acoustic Signal Production in Noisy Environments. In: Brumm, H. (eds) Animal Communication and Noise. Animal Signals and Communication, vol 2. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-41494-7_5

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