title: Evidence suggests vocal production learning in a cross-fostered Risso's dolphin (Grampus griseus).
abstract: Vocal learning is a rare skill in mammals, and we have limited information about the contexts in which they use it. Previous studies suggested that cetaceans in general are skilled at imitating sounds, but only few species have been studied to date. To expand this investigation to another species and to investigate the possible influence of the social environment on vocal learning, we studied the whistle repertoire of a female Risso's dolphin (Grampus griseus) that was stranded at an early age and was subsequently raised in a group of bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus). We show that this cross-fostered animal produced vocal signals more akin to those of its Tursiops poolmates than those of Risso's dolphins in the wild. This is one of very few systematic cross-fostering studies in cetaceans and the first to suggest vocal production learning in the Risso's dolphin. Our findings also suggest that social experience is a major factor in the development of the vocal repertoire in this species.
authors.affiliation: Sea Mammal Research Unit, School of Biology, University of St Andrews, Fife, KY16 8LB, UK.|Department of Life Sciences and Systems Biology, University of Torino, 10123, Turin, Italy.
authors.forename: Livio
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Favaro
authors.affiliation: Sea Mammal Research Unit, School of Biology, University of St Andrews, Fife, KY16 8LB, UK.|SECAC, Society for the Study of Cetaceans in Canary Archipelago, Apartados de Correos 49, Arrecife de Lanzarote, Spain.
authors.forename: Silvana
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Neves
authors.affiliation: Oltremare Marine Park, 47838, Riccione, Rimini, Italy.
authors.forename: Stefano
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Furlati
authors.affiliation: Department of Life Sciences and Systems Biology, University of Torino, 10123, Turin, Italy.
authors.forename: Daniela
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Pessani
authors.affiliation: SECAC, Society for the Study of Cetaceans in Canary Archipelago, Apartados de Correos 49, Arrecife de Lanzarote, Spain.
authors.forename: Vidal
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Martin
authors.affiliation: Sea Mammal Research Unit, School of Biology, University of St Andrews, Fife, KY16 8LB, UK. vj@st-and.ac.uk.
authors.forename: Vincent M
authors.initials: VM
authors.lastname: Janik
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D050681:Bottle-Nosed Dolphin; D005260:Female; D007858:Learning; D012919:Social Behavior; D014828:Vocalization, Animal
keywords: Bioacoustics; Bottlenose dolphin; Grampus griseus; Risso’s dolphin; Signature whistles; Tursiops truncatus