BIOACOUSTICS OF DOMESTICATION: ALARM AND COURTSHIP CALLS OF WILD AND DOMESTIC CAVIES

ABSTRACT

Comparisons of wild (Cavia aperea) and domestic (C. porcellus) cavies promote an understanding of the physiological and behavioral effects of domestication. The richness and peculiarities of Cavia acoustic repertoires encourage the use of this model for testing how domestication alters repertoires and the physical structure of calls. We present a comparison between alarm and courtship calls of domestic and two populations of wild cavies from different geographic regions, one of them with a short-term captivity history of 25 generations. We found significant differences between domestic and wild cavies in both calls, particularly in temporal parameters, and only spectral differences between two wild populations in alarm calls. There were also differences in the frequency of emission of calls: alarm calls were more frequent in the wild and courtship calls were more frequent in the domestic species. Our results suggest that domestication has influenced the temporal parameters of both alarm and courtship calls of C. porcellus, but not the spectral parameters that, instead, may be influenced by environment or population factors.     

THE ELECTRICAL CONDUCTANCE OF SUSPENSIONS OF ELLIPSOIDS AND ITS RELATION TO THE STUDY OF AVIAN ERYTHROCYTES

1. The theory of electrical conductance of colloidal suspensions has been extended to cover the case of ellipsoids with three axes different. 2. The results have been applied to suspensions of ellipsoidal erythrocytes of birds. 3. It has been shown that fluctuations in electrical resistance of suspensions of erythrocytes after stirring are due to streaming orientation of the cells. 4. The theory has been extended to cover four cases of orientation and tested experimentally in specially designed flow cells by electrical and optical methods. 5. Application of the flow method to the study of the shape of colloidal particles is discussed.     

CHRONOLOGICAL CHANGES IN THE INDUCTIVE ABILITY OF THE MESENCHYME OF THE DIGESTIVE ORGANS IN AVIAN EMBRYOS

Dissociation and reassociation experiments were carried out to study the inductive ability of mesenchyme of the oesophagus, gizzard and intestine of the chicken embryo, using 3-day-old quail embryonic allantoic endoderm as an effector tissue. The mesenchyme of the oesophagus and gizzard possesses inductive ability until the Ilth day of incubation. Thereafter, it no longer has inductive influence upon the allantoic endoderm. The intestinal mesenchyme was favourable to differentiation of allantoic endoderm into intestinal epithelium even on the I5th day of incubation. In all types of recombination tested, goblet cells differentiated among allantoic endodermal cells.     

USE OF THE DISCRIMINANT FUNCTION TO PREDICT THE NUMBER OF CONSUMERS WHO DISCRIMINATE

Three brands of chocolate milk were evaluated for liking, sweetness, creaminess and natural flavor by 48 consumers, using 100mm line scale. The mean sweetness score for one brand was significantly different to the other two and all other attributes were similar. Discriminant analysis on scores from the line scales showed that 63.8% of the evaluations of the least sweet brand (Brand A) were classified by the discriminant function as belonging to the least sweet brand. 19.1% of the scores for Brand B and 17.0% for Brand C were classified as identifying Brand A. A simple count of the number of consumers ranking each brand as least sweet showed that 63.8% chose Brand A, 19.1% Brand B and 17.0% Brand C. This suggests that the discriminant function provides a measure of the proportion of assessors who can tell the difference or, a measure of the degree of confusion between samples.     

USING ORGANOCHLORINE POLLUTANTS TO DISCRIMINATE MARINE MAMMAL POPULATIONS: A REVIEW AND CRITIQUE OF THE METHODS1

Organochlorine pollutants are potentially useful for identifying discrete populations of marine mammals that overlap in geographic distribution. However, many factors unrelated to geographical distribution may affect the chemical burden of individual animals or of entire population components even within a homogeneously distributed population. These factors include. among others, nutritional state, sex, age, trophic level, distance of habitat from mainland and pollution source, excretion. metabolism, and tissue composition. Sample storage and analytical methodology may also be an important source of variation. These, and any other factors, must be identified and their effect ascertained before attempting any comparison between populations. This paper critically examines the nature and magnitude of the effects of these factors on organochlorine tissue loads in marine mammals. Pollutant concentrations can be strongly biased if carefully designed sampling regimes are not followed, but they are affected only moderately by sample treatment after collection. Conversely, ratios between concentrations of compounds, such as the DDE/tDDT or the tDDT/PCB ratios, seem less dependent on sampling regime but more affected by storage. analytical procedures and ecological variations such as distance from pollutant source or trophic level. Taking these effects into account, advice is provided about sampling and strategies for selection of variables that will improve the reliability of the comparisons between populations.     

THE SOCIAL BEHAVIOUR OF THE WHITE WAGTAIL MOTACILLA ALBA ALBA WINTERING IN ISRAEL

White Wagtails Motacilla alba wintering in Israel are partly territorial, mostly around human habitations, and partly live in flocks around temporary food sources. Individual birds may spend part of the season (or the day) in the territory and the other part with a flock. Experiments with artificial distribution of food, in a natural habitat, brought about a change from flocking to territorial behaviour. Preliminary observations suggest that in the natural situation the pattern of food distribution may be the proximate factor which regulates the birds' behaviour, by determining whether they have to fight for their food. Pairs are formed on many territories, and may last for long or short periods. Pair formation is initiated by females, who when seeking food appease the territorial males and are able to stay with them on their territories. Females also manifest territorial behaviour. Although pairing in winter territories is similar, in the behaviour involved, to sexual pairing, it is very unlikely that winter pairing continues into, or influences, pairing for breeding. It is suggested that the function of winter pair formation is that it allows two birds to exploit one territory, and that the main advantage is to the female which is the subordinate bird of the pair. This kind of pair-formation may be analogous to non-breeding group territories reported in some other birds.     

DIFFERENCES IN THE CALLS OF EUROPEAN AND NORTH AMERICAN BLACK-BILLED MAGPIES AND THE YELLOW-BILLED MAGPIE

ABSTRACT

We compared several features of the chatter call of two races of black-billed magpies, the nominate, European race Pica pica pica and the North American race P.p. hudsonia and the yellow-billed magpie P. nuttalli. The chatter calls of the two North American species were much more similar to each other than either was to the European magpie. This information together with the recently determined similarities in the behaviour and social organisation of the two North American species, suggests that the phylogenetic affinities of these two species are closer than is implied by their taxonomic status.     

THE ULTRASTRUCTURE OF THE AVIAN EGGSHELL

By means of scanning electron microscopy the eggshells of a number of passerine and non-passerine wild birds have been investigated. Details and structures have been shown which were hitherto unrevealed by other methods. As suggested by Schmidt (1962a) and Tyler (1964a, 1966a), there is no crystallographic demarcation between cone and palisade layer. There are many vesicular holes in the palisade layer, the physiological significance of which is not yet understood. Bird groups, sometimes even bird species, show specific features of ultratexture of the eggshell by which, for instance, mimetic cuckoo eggs can be distinguished from the eggs of fosters. Other examples are given in which ultra-structure provides useful taxonomic evidence.