Bird song: superfast muscles control dove's trill.
Bird songs frequently contain trilling sounds that demand extremely fast vocalization control. Here we show that doves control their syrinx, a vocal organ that is unique to birds, by using superfast muscles. These muscles, which are similar to those that operate highly specialist acoustic organs such as the rattle of the rattlesnake, are among the fastest vertebrate muscles known and could be much more widespread than previously thought if they are the principal muscle type used to control bird songs.
Elemans
Coen P H
CP
Experimental Zoology Group, Wageningen University, 6709 PG Wageningen, The Netherlands. coen.elemans@wur.nl
Spierts
Igor L Y
IL
Müller
Ulrike K
UK
Van Leeuwen
Johan L
JL
Goller
Franz
F
D000818:Animals; D010856:Columbidae / Q000502:physiology*; D004576:Electromyography; D009132:Muscles / Q000502:physiology*; D013016:Sound; D013997:Time Factors; D014732:Vibration; D014828:Vocalization, Animal / Q000502:physiology*