Song parameters, repertoire size, and song sharing within and across age classes in the saffron finch

SALDÍVAR, MARÍA JULIANA BENÍTEZ; MIÑO, CAROLINA ISABEL; MASSONI, VIVIANA

JOURNAL OF AVIAN BIOLOGY

WILEY-BLACKWELL PUBLISHING, INC

Año: 2020 vol. 51

0908-8857

Birds sing mostly to attract partners or to defend territories or resources. In relation tothe first function, song can vary with age if older experienced males signal their qualitythrough their vocal output. Regarding the second function, song can also vary with ageif singing behavior helps mediate social interactions through repertoire sharing withneighbors. Here, we investigate whether song parameters change with age, and in whichdirection, in saffron finches Sicalis flaveola pelzelni, obligate secondary cavity nesterswhich produce elaborate melodious songs and show delayed plumage maturation.Cross-sectional comparisons revealed that second year (SY) males sing shortersyllables, and shorter and less versatile songs than older after second year males (ASY),as expected if the latter are more experienced singers. Longitudinal comparisons, whichbetter depict age-related changes, showed that as birds age one year, song length andrepertoire size do not change significantly, syllable duration shortens and, as expectedfor experienced singers, song versatility increases. Correlations between repertoiredistance and nesting distance suggest that both SY and ASY males might be adjustingtheir repertoires to those of ASY neighbors; the former pattern conforms to theexpectations if young birds try to emulate the songs of more experienced birds, whilethe latter is expected if song sharing helps de-escalating antagonistic social interactionsamongst males. This research, which provides the first description of song parameters inyoung second year saffron finches, expands our knowledge of song variation across ageclasses in songbirds.