Sounding the alarm: Functionally referential signaling in Azure-winged Magpie
Functionally referential signals are a complex form of communication that conveys information about the external environment. Such signals have been found in a range of mammal and bird species and have helped us understand the complexities of animal communication. Corvids are well known for their ex...
| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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KeAi Communications Co., Ltd.
2024-01-01
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| Series: | Avian Research |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2053716624000070 |
| _version_ | 1797267831337779200 |
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| author | Xingyi Jiang Yanyun Zhang |
| author_facet | Xingyi Jiang Yanyun Zhang |
| author_sort | Xingyi Jiang |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Functionally referential signals are a complex form of communication that conveys information about the external environment. Such signals have been found in a range of mammal and bird species and have helped us understand the complexities of animal communication. Corvids are well known for their extraordinary cognitive abilities, but relatively little attention has been paid to their vocal function. Here, we investigated the functionally referential signals of a cooperatively breeding corvid species, Azure-winged Magpie (Cyanopica cyanus). Through field observations, we suggest that Azure-winged Magpie uses referential alarm calls to distinguish two types of threats: ‘rasp’ calls for terrestrial threats and ‘chatter’ calls for aerial threats. A playback experiment revealed that Azure-winged Magpies responded to the two call types with qualitatively different behaviors. They sought cover by flying into the bushes in response to the ‘chatter’ calls, and flew to or stayed at higher positions in response to ‘rasp’ calls, displaying a shorter response time to ‘chatter’ calls. Significant differences in acoustic structure were found between the two types of calls. Given the extensive cognitive abilities of corvids and the fact that referential signals were once thought to be unique to primates, these findings are important for expanding our understanding of social communication and language evolution. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-25T01:22:50Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-a9f49cd4546847a284f99185d693b494 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2053-7166 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-25T01:22:50Z |
| publishDate | 2024-01-01 |
| publisher | KeAi Communications Co., Ltd. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Avian Research |
| spelling | doaj.art-a9f49cd4546847a284f99185d693b4942024-03-09T09:24:52ZengKeAi Communications Co., Ltd.Avian Research2053-71662024-01-0115100164Sounding the alarm: Functionally referential signaling in Azure-winged MagpieXingyi Jiang0Yanyun Zhang1Ministry of Education Key Laboratory for Biodiversity and Ecological Engineering, College of Life Sciences, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, ChinaCorresponding author.; Ministry of Education Key Laboratory for Biodiversity and Ecological Engineering, College of Life Sciences, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, ChinaFunctionally referential signals are a complex form of communication that conveys information about the external environment. Such signals have been found in a range of mammal and bird species and have helped us understand the complexities of animal communication. Corvids are well known for their extraordinary cognitive abilities, but relatively little attention has been paid to their vocal function. Here, we investigated the functionally referential signals of a cooperatively breeding corvid species, Azure-winged Magpie (Cyanopica cyanus). Through field observations, we suggest that Azure-winged Magpie uses referential alarm calls to distinguish two types of threats: ‘rasp’ calls for terrestrial threats and ‘chatter’ calls for aerial threats. A playback experiment revealed that Azure-winged Magpies responded to the two call types with qualitatively different behaviors. They sought cover by flying into the bushes in response to the ‘chatter’ calls, and flew to or stayed at higher positions in response to ‘rasp’ calls, displaying a shorter response time to ‘chatter’ calls. Significant differences in acoustic structure were found between the two types of calls. Given the extensive cognitive abilities of corvids and the fact that referential signals were once thought to be unique to primates, these findings are important for expanding our understanding of social communication and language evolution.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2053716624000070Alarm callAnimal communicationAzure-winged MagpieReferential signal |
| spellingShingle | Xingyi Jiang Yanyun Zhang Sounding the alarm: Functionally referential signaling in Azure-winged Magpie Avian Research Alarm call Animal communication Azure-winged Magpie Referential signal |
| title | Sounding the alarm: Functionally referential signaling in Azure-winged Magpie |
| title_full | Sounding the alarm: Functionally referential signaling in Azure-winged Magpie |
| title_fullStr | Sounding the alarm: Functionally referential signaling in Azure-winged Magpie |
| title_full_unstemmed | Sounding the alarm: Functionally referential signaling in Azure-winged Magpie |
| title_short | Sounding the alarm: Functionally referential signaling in Azure-winged Magpie |
| title_sort | sounding the alarm functionally referential signaling in azure winged magpie |
| topic | Alarm call Animal communication Azure-winged Magpie Referential signal |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2053716624000070 |
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