Abstract
Climatic conditions represent one of the main constraints that influence avian calling behavior. Here, we monitored the daily calling activity of the Undulated Tinamou (Crypturellus undulatus) and the Chaco Chachalaca (Ortalis canicollis) during the dry and wet seasons in the Brazilian Pantanal. We aimed to assess the effects of climate predictors on the vocal activity of these focal species and evaluate whether these effects may vary among seasons. Air temperature was positively associated with the daily calling activity of both species during the dry season. However, the vocal activity of both species was unrelated to air temperature during the wet season, when higher temperatures occur. Daily rainfall was positively related to the daily calling activity of both species during the dry season, when rainfall events are scarce and seem to act as a trigger for breeding phenology of the focal species. Nonetheless, daily rainfall was negatively associated with the daily calling activity of the Undulated Tinamou during the wet season, when rainfall was abundant. This study improves our understanding of the vocal behavior of tropical birds and their relationships with climate, but further research is needed to elucidate the mechanisms behind the associations found in our study.
Highlights
Accepted: 12 July 2021Bird vocalizations have important roles in territory establishment and mate attraction, but they are uttered to maintain group contact and to signal about food or danger, such as threats or fights [1,2,3]
The influence of climatic conditions on the vocal activity of birds is not restricted to direct impacts on bird vocal behavior, as it is related to changes in sound transmission
Tinamou and the Chaco Chachalaca in the Brazilian Pantanal are related to climatic conditions
Summary
Accepted: 12 July 2021Bird vocalizations have important roles in territory establishment and mate attraction, but they are uttered to maintain group contact and to signal about food or danger, such as threats or fights [1,2,3]. Vocal activity, is affected by endogenous factors (e.g., breeding seasonality and mating status [8]) as well as by exogenous factors (e.g., photoperiod [9,10], climatic conditions [11], habitat structure [12], moon phase [13,14], background noise [15], and artificial light [16]). The influence of climatic conditions on the vocal activity of birds is not restricted to direct impacts on bird vocal behavior, as it is related to changes in sound transmission (e.g., an increase in temperature results in an increase in the absorption of low-frequency sounds [17]). Rainfall is the climatic predictor with the most influence on bird vocal activity [11,18].
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