For whom does the female dove coo? A case for the role of vocal self-stimulation

Abstract

A scries of studies on the courtship behaviour of ring doves, Streptopelia risoria, has revealed a hitherto unsuspected function of the female's nest coo, suggesting a new dimension to the, functional analysis of vocal displays. Male and female ring doves perform a predictable sequence of courtship displays that culminate in egg laying. It has been thought the male's displays provoke the endocrine changes in the female that lead to ovulation. However, there is now evidence, reviewed here, that the female's own nest coos affect her endocrine state. Females prevented from performing the nest coo showed little or no follicular growth despite active courtship by the males. This was true whether the female was devocalized through lesioning the midbrain vocal control region nucleus intercollicularis, severing the syringeal nerves, or deflating the interclavicular sac. Other possible examples of vocal self-stimulation are discussed, and it is suggested that the phenomenon may be widespread.