Search results for "bioacoustics"
showing 10 items of 24 documents
The tropical African genus Morgenia (Orthoptera, Tettigoniidae, Phaneropterinae) with emphasis on the spur at the mid tibia
2018
The authors revised the genus Morgenia Karsch, 1890 which now consists of eight species, of which three are here newly described (Morgeniaplurimaculata Massa & Moulin, sp. n., M.angustipinnata Massa, sp. n., and M.lehmannorum Heller & Massa, sp. n.). Six of the eight species occur in the Tri National Sangha (TNS) comprising Dzanga-Sangha Special Reserve and Dzanga Ndoki National Park (Central African Republic), whose high biodiversity has been recently highlighted. In particular the genus is characterised by the presence of a more or less long spur at the inner mid tibia, different in each species; in M.modulata, it moved lower down into a new position at about ¼ of tibia, w…
Decoding Group Vocalizations: The Acoustic Energy Distribution of Chorus Howls Is Useful to Determine Wolf Reproduction
2016
Population monitoring is crucial for wildlife management and conservation. In the last few decades, wildlife researchers have increasingly applied bioacoustics tools to obtain information on several essential ecological parameters, such as distribution and abundance. One such application involves wolves (Canis lupus). These canids respond to simulated howls by emitting group vocalizations known as chorus howls. These responses to simulated howls reveal the presence of wolf litters during the breeding period and are therefore often used to determine the status of wolf populations. However, the acoustic structure of chorus howls is complex and discriminating the presence of pups in a chorus i…
Paraplangia sinespeculo, a new genus and species of bush-cricket, with notes on its biology and a key to the genera of Phaneropterinae (Orthoptera: T…
2018
Madagascar is a well-known hotspot of biodiversity. However, many Orthoptera, and especially the Tettigonioidea, belong to little-studied groups. Here we describe a new genus and species of bush-cricket reared from field-collected eggs.Paraplangiasinespeculogen. nov., sp. nov. belongs to Phaneropterinae and shares diagnostic characteristics with members of the tribe Amblycoryphini and its African subtribe Plangiina stat. nov.Paraplangia, which has a chromosome number of 31 X0, differs from other African members of the tribe and subtribe such asEurycoryphaandPlangia, which both have 29 X0. In addition to morphology, we describe the male calling song, female acoustic response, and mating beha…
Unlocking the potential of deep learning for marine ecology: overview, applications, and outlook
2022
The deep learning revolution is touching all scientific disciplines and corners of our lives as a means of harnessing the power of big data. Marine ecology is no exception. These new methods provide analysis of data from sensors, cameras, and acoustic recorders, even in real time, in ways that are reproducible and rapid. Off-the-shelf algorithms can find, count, and classify species from digital images or video and detect cryptic patterns in noisy data. Using these opportunities requires collaboration across ecological and data science disciplines, which can be challenging to initiate. To facilitate these collaborations and promote the use of deep learning towards ecosystem-based management…
Do Women Prefer More Complex Music around Ovulation?
2012
The evolutionary origins of music are much debated. One theory holds that the ability to produce complex musical sounds might reflect qualities that are relevant in mate choice contexts and hence, that music is functionally analogous to the sexually-selected acoustic displays of some animals. If so, women may be expected to show heightened preferences for more complex music when they are most fertile. Here, we used computer-generated musical pieces and ovulation predictor kits to test this hypothesis. Our results indicate that women prefer more complex music in general; however, we found no evidence that their preference for more complex music increased around ovulation. Consequently, our f…
A new voice from Sardinia: Uromenus annae (Targioni-Tozzetti, 1881 (Insecta: Orthoptera: Tettigoniidae: Bradyporinae: Ephippigerini)
2019
Recent findings of the Sardinian endemic Bushcricket Uromenus annae (Targioni Tozzetti, 1881) allowed the authors to retrace the nomenclatorial history of the species. The rearing of living specimens resulted in the recording of the male song, previously unknown. Since the Neotype previously established by Fontana & Buzzetti (2001) is lost, a new Neotype is here designated. Affinities with other congeneric species are discussed.
The Structure and Usage of Female and Male Mouse Ultrasonic Vocalizations Reveal only Minor Differences
2012
Ultrasonic vocalizations (USV) of mice are increasingly recognized as informative dependent variables in studies using mouse models of human diseases. While pup vocalizations primarily serve to re-establish contact with the mother, adult male ‘‘songs’’ were considered to be courtship signals. Alternatively, mouse USVs may generally function as territorial signals. To distinguish between these two hypotheses, we compared the structure and usage of adult male and female USVs in staged resident-intruder encounters. If calls function primarily as courtship signals, males should respond stronger than females, specifically when presented with a female intruder. Refuting this hypothesis, we found …
Beneficial effects of choir singing on cognition and well-being of older adults: Evidence from a cross-sectional study.
2021
Background and objectivesChoir singing has been associated with better mood and quality of life (QOL) in healthy older adults, but little is known about its potential cognitive benefits in aging. In this study, our aim was to compare the subjective (self-reported) and objective (test-based) cognitive functioning of senior choir singers and matched control subjects, coupled with assessment of mood, QOL, and social functioning.Research design and methodsWe performed a cross-sectional questionnaire study in 162 healthy older (age ≥ 60 years) adults (106 choir singers, 56 controls), including measures of cognition, mood, social engagement, QOL, and role of music in daily life. The choir singers…
Naturalistic music and dance: Cortical phase synchrony in musicians and dancers
2018
Expertise in music has been investigated for decades and the results have been applied not only in composition, performance and music education, but also in understanding brain plasticity in a larger context. Several studies have revealed a strong connection between auditory and motor processes and listening to and performing music, and music imagination. Recently, as a logical next step in music and movement, the cognitive and affective neuro-sciences have been directed towards expertise in dance. To understand the versatile and overlapping processes during artistic stimuli, such as music and dance, it is necessary to study them with continuous naturalistic stimuli. Thus, we used long exce…
Memorable Experiences with Sad Music : Reasons, Reactions and Mechanisms of Three Types of Experiences
2016
Reactions to memorable experiences of sad music were studied by means of a survey administered to a convenience (N = 1577), representative (N = 445), and quota sample (N = 414). The survey explored the reasons, mechanisms, and emotions of such experiences. Memorable experiences linked with sad music typically occurred in relation to extremely familiar music, caused intense and pleasurable experiences, which were accompanied by physiological reactions and positive mood changes in about a third of the participants. A consistent structure of reasons and emotions for these experiences was identified through exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses across the samples. Three types of sadness …