title: Effect of temporal and spectral noise features on gap detection behavior by calling green treefrogs.
abstract: Communication plays a central role in the behavioral ecology of many animals, yet the background noise generated by large breeding aggregations may impair effective communication. A common behavioral strategy to ameliorate noise interference is gap detection, where signalers display primarily during lulls in the background noise. When attempting gap detection, signalers have to deal with the fact that the spacing and duration of silent gaps is often unpredictable, and that noise varies in its spectral composition and may thus vary in the degree in which it impacts communication. I conducted playback experiments to examine how male treefrogs deal with the problem that refraining from calling while waiting for a gap to appear limits a male's ability to attract females, yet producing calls during noise also interferes with effective sexual communication. I found that the temporal structure of noise (i.e., duration of noise and silent gap segments) had a stronger effect on male calling behavior than the spectral composition. Males placed calls predominantly during silent gaps and avoided call production during short, but not long, noise segments. This suggests that male treefrogs use a calling strategy that maximizes the production of calls without interference, yet allows for calling to persist if lulls in the background noise are infrequent.
authors.affiliation: Behavioral and Molecular Ecology Group, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee, 3209 N. Maryland Ave., Milwaukee, WI 53201, USA. Electronic address: hoebel@uwm.edu.
authors.forename: Gerlinde
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Höbel
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001307:Auditory Perception / Q000502:physiology*; D008297:Male; D063188:Rana clamitans / Q000502:physiology*; D012726:Sexual Behavior, Animal / Q000502:physiology*; D013016:Sound; D013997:Time Factors; D014828:Vocalization, Animal / Q000502:physiology*
keywords: Call inhibition; Call timing; Inhibitory-resetting