Increased frequency of the acoustic signal aberrations in the peripheral populations of the steppe marmot

Abstract

Analysis of the frequency spectrum of the alarm call from the steppe marmot ( Marmota bobak Muller, 1776) demonstrated aberrations in all populations throughout the major part of the species area. In the peripheral part, deviations from the normal type were much more frequent than in the center of the area. In biological literature, aberration means a noticeable deviation from the wild phenotype of the species. In population phenetics, aberrations are usually assumed to result from mutations, though this has been confirmed directly only in a few natural populations. In this study, magnetic recordings of the vocal response of the steppe marmot to the presence of a human in the colony were collected under field conditions. By means of an acoustic signal, marmots alert their neighbors to the potential or real danger, including arrival of humans [1]. The signal was analyzed using the SpectraLab v.4.32.11 for Windows software. In total, the spectrograms obtained from 640 individuals from eight local populations were studied (table). The working names of the populations, their locations (the administrative region and district), and the year of collection are shown below.