Chapter 6: Communication

Question 1

Definition of communication

Answer 1

Provision of information from a sender to a receiver

Question 2

Definition of signals

Answer 2

acts\structures that affet the behavior of other organisms and have evolved because of those effect

Question 3

name five manners of communication

Answer 3

• simple communication (ie bacteria, w\o cognative abilities)
• non-informative (lack of cognition)
• passive communication (swim movements, exhaling, etc)
• auto-communication (echolocation)
• informative communication (incl. cognition, ie: alarm Calls, waggle Dance)

Question 4

how much greater is the auditory ability of marine Mammals compared to land Mammals?

Answer 4

2-3x

Question 5

aquatic animals communicate more in the water, semi-aquatic animals communicate more in the air.

Answer 5

sound travels from 1-100km, compared to light, which travels 100m-10km

Question 6

what is the difference in larynx structure between pinnipeds and baleen whales?

Answer 6

Pinn- well developed. diff btwn male and female

baleen- unusual laryngeal sac and nasal passages

Question 7

what is so unique about the larynx for toothed whales?

Answer 7

the artenoid and eppiglottal cartilages elongated to beak-like structures which separte respiratory tract from the mouth\esophagus.
-REDUCES RISK OF CHOKING: BREATHE AND SWALLOW AT SAME TIME!

Question 8

> > review ‘sound productoin pinnipeds’ in textbook, the variation between seals.

Answer 8

slide 8/32 of Chapter 6

Question 9

Look up the hooded seals. is it just that they have the inflatable nasal Hood and septum?

Answer 9

the inflatable nasal Hood and septum is a visal and Acoustic display. look this up.

Question 10

How do sirenians vocalize?

Answer 10

underwater without emitting air, but mechanism is unknown

Question 11

how do polar bears produce sound?

Answer 11

laryngeal mechanisms of terrestrial Mammals, lip vibrations

Question 12

how do mysticetes produce sound?

Answer 12

resonator: unusual laryngeal sac and nasal passages.

Question 13

Which species creates the loudest sound of all animals in the animal Kingdom?

Answer 13

sperm whale

Question 14

What is unique about sperm whales and how they use sound?

Answer 14

• they are the loudest animal of the animal Kingdom

- they use interclick intervals. This is especially effective due to their body size

Question 15

review Source filter models (slide 14/32)

Answer 15

do it

Question 16

define autocommunication

what type of animals usually use this form?

Answer 16

signals are sent out to create a returning sound from obstacles

• information about location, size and composition of environment/prey
• mostly high frequency clicks and sweeps
• bats, odontocetes, shrews, birds

Question 17

What allows dolphins to use echolocation?

Answer 17

their brains are capable of very rapid autidory processing

Question 18

What is ICI?

Answer 18

inter click interval. it Equals the round trip and lag time.

Question 19

slide 18/32, ‘belubas ici are less than Return time: process Whole click trains’ . look this up in the textbook

Answer 19

yup

Question 20

Prob read up on all echolocation stuff. notes are confusing.
‘Porpoise’s echolocation are 5-10x longer but half the bandwidth (of whom?), less loud.
>How are porpoises able to transmit such high frequencies?

Answer 20

they have inner ears which are specialized for high frequency audition

Question 21

How deep can sperm whales send their clicks? what kind of frequency do they have?

Answer 21

clicks at a lower frequency.

Depths up to 400m

Question 22

Do bowheads use echolocation?

Answer 22

bowheads use ECHOs from Calls to detect ice obstacles

Question 23

Do seals use echolocation?

Answer 23

they sometimes use high frequency clicks but nothing proven

Question 24

what are Three types of definitions for communication?

Answer 24

• true communication: Exchange of info that benefit both sender and receiver
• manipulatin communication: benefits the signaller at a cost to the receiver
• eavesdropping or iterception: benefits the receiver at cost to the signaller

Question 25

read up on the page about repertoires (slide 24/32). regarding Calls, distinct Calls and varations

Answer 25

• distinct Calls are signature whistles and dialects
• variations are graded info that may carry info on emotional state, alertness, excitement, heirarchy, danger, Food, etc.

Question 26

what are Calls often comprised of?

Answer 26

patterned combinations, combined With other displays such as hooded seals, jaw clapping dolphins

Question 27

which types of whales can transmit Calls greater than 1000km? What type of frequencies are these Calls? what are the Calls like?

Answer 27

fin whales, blue whales. low freq.

signals are loud, stereotyped, spectrally simple, long, repetitive, and temporally patterend.

Question 28

name some examples of vocal learning

Answer 28

• acousitic mimicry: belugas
• dialects of resident orcas in BC
• humpback whale songs
• geographical variances such as most seals, humpys

Question 29

how can Acoustics affect cnservation?

Answer 29

• Acoustic monitoring can be a useful tool for distribution and abundance estimates
• Man made noise can iterfere and become a problem for marine Mammals.

Question 30

Pinnipeds:

• which species uses expansive dorsal tracheal vibrations? what does this allow it to do?
• which species uses vocal folds? how is this different from the prior?

Answer 30

• bearded seals, continuous underwater song

- weddel seals, can’t continuous underwater sing

Question 31

which species uses expansive dorsal tracheal vibrations? what is its result?
which species uses vocal folds? how is it different?

Answer 31

bearded seals, continuous underwater singing.

weddell seals. no continuous underwater singing.

Question 32

What is an important result of human vocal filtering?

what are three important non-linear phenomena in M.Mammals?

Answer 32

formants

-subharmonics, biphonation, deterministic chaos.