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Infrasonic and Seismic Communication in the Vertebrates with Special Emphasis on the Afrotheria: An Update and Future Directions

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Vertebrate Sound Production and Acoustic Communication

Part of the book series: Springer Handbook of Auditory Research ((SHAR,volume 53))

Abstract

Infrasonic and seismic communication in terrestrial vertebrates is generally poorly known. Moreover, studies of these communication modalities have been restricted to relatively few vertebrate groups. In this chapter we begin with the non-Afrotherian vertebrates and review what is known about their infrasonic (including birds and mammals) and seismic (including amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals) communication. We then devote special sections to the Afrotherian vertebrates, concentrating on (1) infrasonic communication in elephants, (2) seismic communication in elephants, and (3) seismic communication in golden moles (Chrysocloridae). Motivated by the lack of detailed knowledge of vibration communication in chrysochlorids, we furnish a blueprint for a set of experiments that would provide novel and interesting data to fill the lacunae in our understanding of seismic signal detection and localization by these enigmatic animals.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Departments of Integrative Biology and Physiology, and Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California Los Angeles, 621 Charles E. Young Drive South, Los Angeles, CA, 90095, USA

    Peter M. Narins

  2. Department of Cognitive Biology, UZA 1, Biologiezentrum, Althanstrasse 14, 1090, Vienna, Austria

    Angela S. Stoeger

  3. Department of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Stanford University School of Medicine, 801 Welch Road, Stanford, CA, 94305-5739, USA

    Caitlin O’Connell-Rodwell

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  1. Medical Science, Jordan Hall, Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana, USA

    Roderick A. Suthers

  2. Dept. of Cognitive Biology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria

    W. Tecumseh Fitch

  3. Marine Biological Laboratory, Falmouth, Massachusetts, USA

    Richard R. Fay

  4. College Park, USA

    Arthur N. Popper

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Narins, P.M., Stoeger, A.S., O’Connell-Rodwell, C. (2016). Infrasonic and Seismic Communication in the Vertebrates with Special Emphasis on the Afrotheria: An Update and Future Directions. In: Suthers, R., Fitch, W., Fay, R., Popper, A. (eds) Vertebrate Sound Production and Acoustic Communication. Springer Handbook of Auditory Research, vol 53. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-27721-9_7

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