Association between song and a complex habitat transition in a sparrow (Zonotrichia capensis)

ATTINÁ, NATALÍ; LAVINIA OBLANCA PABLO DAMIÁN; TUBARO PABLO LUIS; LIJTMAER DARÍO A.

Virtual (Covid-19)

Congreso; 57th Annual Conference of the Animal Behavior Society; 2020

The acoustic adaptation hypothesis (AAH) proposes that song structure is adapted to minimize its degradation during transmission and predicts that notes should be more separated in closed than in open environments. The Rufous-collared Sparrow (Zonotrichia capensis) has been extensively studied in this regard due to the association between its song dialects and habitat. However, the spatial assessment of its song variation has been rather simple. We studied the association between vocalizations and habitat in this species in a complex matrix of interdigitated steppe and espinal woodland in central Argentina. We recorded 629 individuals in a 170 km x 100 km area. We found a reversed pattern of association between song and habitat compared to that expected under the AAH in the south of the study area and a less clear association in the north. These results could be due to the combined effect of intense winds and a lower density of individuals in the steppe. Our results confirm the close association between song and habitat in this species, even in intricate environmental transitions, but show that this association can be complex and difficult to predict.