Saliency of temporal fine structure in zebra finch vocalizations

Abstract

Previous work has shown that birds. in general, and zebra finches. in particular, have remarkable sensitivity to temporal fine structure (TFS). While spectral, envelope, and TFS cues are present in vocalizations, TFS has been largely ignored since sonographic, and not time waveform, analyses have been the mainstay in bioacoustics. However, birds’ impressive sensitivity to TFS raises the question of whether behaviorally relevant information is carried within the TFS. Indeed, zebra finches have at least 10 call types that both males and females use in sophisticated ways to coordinate activities. Furthermore, zebra finch vocalizations are typically composed of harmonic stacks, rich in TFS. Here, we isolated and described patterns in the TFS between and within individuals for different call types and constructed test stimuli from these patterns of TFS for psychoacoustic experiments. Demonstrating TFS sensitivity within natural stimuli would argue for the increasing salience of TFS for real-life communication in birds. [Work supported by a NIDCD T32 DC000046-16 to NHP.]