01637nas a2200277 4500008004100000022001400041245009000055210006900145260001600214520083900230653000901069653001701078653003101095653001501126653001301141653001801154653001201172653001001184100002001194700002001214700000501234700002301239700001801262700002301280856005601303 2019 eng d a2193-719200aA new Myzomela honeyeater (Meliphagidae) from the highlands of Alor Island, Indonesia0 anew Myzomela honeyeater Meliphagidae from the highlands of Alor  cMay-10-20193 a

We here describe a new species of Myzomela honeyeater from the Lesser Sunda island of Alor (southeast Indonesia). The new species is phylogenetically most closely related to Myzomela kuehni from the adjacent island of Wetar and most closely resembles that species in plumage. However, it differs in important morphological, bioacoustic and ecological characteristics. The discovery of a new bird species on Alor is of great biogeographic importance and elevates this island to the status of an Endemic Bird Area. The new Alor Myzomela is restricted to montane eucalypt woodland mostly above 900 m elevation and is currently known from few sites across the island. Based on its occurrence records and human population trends in the highlands of Alor Island, we recommend classification under the IUCN threat status endangered.

10aAlor10abioacoustics10aEcological characteristics10aHoneyeater10aMyzomela10aNovel species10aPlumage10aWetar1 aIrham, Mohammad1 aAshari, Hidayat1 a1 aVerbelen, Philippe1 aWu, Meng, Yue1 aRheindt, Frank, E. uhttp://link.springer.com/10.1007/s10336-019-01722-202109nas a2200253 4500008004100000022001400041245006900055210006500124260001600189520134000205653002301545653001201568653003001580653001301610653001501623653000901638100002201647700002201669700002301691700003101714700003101745700002401776856005501800 2018 eng d a2193-719200aThe buzz segment of Savannah sparrow song is a population marker0 abuzz segment of Savannah sparrow song is a population marker cMar-12-20183 a

Different components of learned birdsongs change at different rates across generations, and the rate of change may correspond to the information carried by each component. To characterize the role of the buzz segment of Savannah sparrow songs, we examined recordings from southeastern Canada and the northeastern US and fully characterized buzz segments in songs recorded from two populations: one on Kent Island, NB, Canada and another in Williamstown, MA, USA. Buzzes varied geographically: Kent Island buzzes had higher mean frequencies and shorter pulse periods than Williamstown buzzes and the differences between the two populations persisted over time. Population-specific buzz characteristics also appeared to be resistant to change. Variants appeared on Kent Island in the late 1980s and were learned by some younger birds; however, these buzz variants disappeared by 2011. We conducted a playback experiment and found that males from both populations had longer responses to local buzzes. Therefore, buzz structure varies geographically; population characteristics of the buzz persist through time despite the introduction of variant forms; and territorial males discriminate between buzzes from different populations. The learned buzz segment of the song may thus serve as a population marker for Savannah sparrows.

10aCultural evolution10adialect10aPasserculus sandwichensis10aplayback10aPopulation10asong1 aWilliams, Heather1 aRobins, Clint, W.1 aNewman, Amy, E. M.1 aFreeman-Gallant, Corey, R.1 aWheelwright, Nathaniel, T.1 aMennill, Daniel, J. uhttp://link.springer.com/10.1007/s10336-018-1611-702390nas a2200229 4500008004100000022001400041245005700055210005600112260001600168520171900184653002601903653002201929653002101951653001801972653001801990653001802008100002202026700001802048700002102066700001802087856005502105 2018 eng d a2193-719200aParent-absent begging and the risk of nest predation0 aParentabsent begging and the risk of nest predation cFeb-11-20203 a

Despite the fact that parent-absent begging (PAB) has been studied as a communication tool during competition between nestlings for food or as a signal of need, its role in nest predation has been poorly investigated. In this study we examined whether the natural level of Common Cuckoo (hereafter “Cuckoo”) PAB increases the risk of artificial nest predation (n = 48) by using three types of experimental playback of parent-present begging (PPB) which differ in the presence or absence of additional PPB, PAB or periods of silence. Contrary to our predictions, we did not find a significant difference in daily survival rates between PPB + PAB vs. PPB + PPB nests or between PPB + PAB vs. PPB + silence nests, indicating that the natural level of Cuckoo PAB did not influence nest vulnerability to predation. Moreover, we did not find a significant difference between nests with any of the types of playback and completely silent control nests, suggesting that not only PAB, but also begging behaviour itself, does not present an important predation cost for nestlings, at least not in cases when nestlings beg at the natural level used in our experiment. As we filmed all experimental nests during their exposure to predators, we were able to show that eight of 20 filmed nest-predation events were caused by predators that never or rarely predate upon passerine nests. Excluding predation events by these unlikely predators, however, did not change our original results. Nonetheless, we advocate direct identification of nest predators to strengthen the interpretation of future studies on the predation cost of begging.

10aAcoustic solicitation10aBegging frequency10aBegging loudness10acommon cuckoo10aNest predator10aNest survival1 aJelínek, Václav1 aŠulc, Michal1 aWeidinger, Karel1 aHonza, Marcel uhttp://link.springer.com/10.1007/s10336-018-1608-202725nas a2200217 4500008004100000022001400041245016200055210006900217260001600286520199500302653001302297653001802310653001202328653002502340653001402365100001802379700002302397700001602420700001602436856005502452 2018 eng d a2193-719200aSinging of Claudia’s Leaf-warbler (Phylloscopus claudiae) in aggressive contexts: role of song rate, song type diversity and song type transitional pattern0 aSinging of Claudia s Leafwarbler Phylloscopus claudiae in aggres cAug-12-20183 a

In many songbirds, males vary certain aspects of their singing behavior when engaged in territorial interactions. Song rate, song type switching rate, song matching, song overlapping, and the usage of specific song types were proposed to be aggressive signals. It is well known that transitions between different song types in a song sequence are non-random in many species, but the signaling significance of non-random vocal streams is poorly understood. We asked whether singing plays a role in male–male interactions in Claudia’s Leaf-warbler. Along with more traditional metrics (i.e., song length, song rate, song type switching rate and song type diversity), we used (1) song sequence linearity (SLIN) and consistency (SCONS) indexes, and (2) applied an information theory approach by means of a first-order relative entropy (RE1) calculation to analyze the role of song type transitional patterns in male–male interactions. The study was conducted in April–June 2016 in Hupingshan National Nature Reserve, Hunan province, China. We simulated territorial intrusion by broadcasting Claudia’s Leaf-warbler songs in territories. Experiments involved 14 different males. A comparison of spontaneous singing with that elicited by playback showed that song rate and song type diversity increased, and that entropy decreased. By contrast, SLIN and SCONS, though significantly correlated with RE1, did not differ between spontaneous singing and singing in response to playback. The decrease of entropy means that the transitions between different song types in a song sequence were determined more by specific factors and predictable and thus more non-random. However, these results were weak, as the decrease of RE1 did not coincide with the expected increase of SLIN, SCONS and S. Our results are thus partly consistent with the idea that non-random vocal structures, along with other song parameters, could play a role in male–male competition.

10abirdsong10acommunication10aEntropy10aPlayback experiments10aTerritory1 aOpaev, Alexey1 aKolesnikova, Yulia1 aLiu, Meishi1 aKang, Zujie uhttp://link.springer.com/10.1007/s10336-018-1614-4