Otoacoustic emissions measured in spotted hyenas (Crocuta crocuta)

Abstract

From birth, female spotted hyenas exhibit highly masculinized bodies and behaviors. Their external genitalia greatly resemble those of males, and they are behaviorally dominant over males. This marked masculinization raised the question of whether the otoacoustic emissions (OAEs) of female spotted hyenas also would be masculinized. Click-evoked OAEs were measured in six female and six male hyenas at two click levels. Also, distortion-product OAEs were measured at four or more primary levels in three frequency regions: 2, 3.5, and 5.0 kHz. Both CEOAEs and DPOAEs were strong in both sexes in spotted hyenas. In humans, both CEOAEs and DPOAEs are stronger in females than males and stronger in right ears than left. Unlike humans, both the CEOAEs and DPOAEs in female spotted hyenas were weaker than those in males, and unlike humans, OAEs were not stronger in right ears. The implication is that the same androgenizing processes that masculinize the body and behavior of female hyenas also masculinize those elements of the cochlea responsible for OAEs. That implication is being tested by measuring the OAEs of other hyenas in the Berkeley colony that were treated with antiandrogenic agents during fetal development. [Work supported by NIDCD.]