Sedgwick Reserve

14 May, 05 PM - 14 Jun, 05 PM

Animal species differ both in their levels of sociality and in the structure and precise function of their vocalizations. When animals live in social groups, one function of vocalizations (such as contact calls or begging calls) is to provide cues that enable conspecifics to individually recognize a particular calling animal. As social living evolves, the amount of individually-recognizable information encoded in these calls is expected to increase in order to facilitate individual recognition in larger groups. However, it is not yet known whether alarm calls, like contact calls, have been generally selected to contain individually-recognizable components. Using several species of wild sciurid rodents, I aim to examine, in a comparative evolutionary context, the relationship between sociality and the individually-recognizable information content in alarm calls. At Sedgwick Reserve, I hope to collect additional data from California ground squirrels (Spermophilus beecheyi) to include in my comparative study. This would involve live-trapping animals, marking individuals with ear tags and/or hair dye, and making recordings of vocalizations.

Visit #13788 @Sedgwick Reserve

Approved

Under Project # 8991 | Research

The evolution of group size and individual distinctiveness-Beecheyi

graduate_student - University of California, Los Angeles

Reservation Members(s)

Kimberly Pollard May 14 - Jun 14, 2008 (32 days)
Kimberly Pollard May 14 - Jun 14, 2008 (32 days)

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Studio Apartment 2 May 14 - Jun 14, 2008