Male Advertisement and Female Choice in Frogs: Recent Findings and New Approaches to the Study of Communication in a Dynamic Acoustic Environment

SYNOPSIS. Typically, anuran amphibians communicate in a complexacoustic environment to which the calls of many males contribute.Although research has demonstrated that male vocal behavioris responsive to changes in this environment, a more thoroughunderstanding of male-male interactions should benefit fromthe use of computer based systems for data acquisition and interactiveplayback. I discuss how I have used such systems in studiesof note timing behavior, unison bout singing, aggressive behaviorand female choice. In addition, I indicate how energetic constraintsmay be involved in shaping the temporal dynamics of chorusing