Design of a robotic zebra finch for experimental studies on developmental song learning.

Birdsong learning has been consolidated as the model system of choice for exploring the biological substrates of vocal learning. In the zebra finch (Taeniopygia guttata), only males sing and they develop their song during a sensitive period in early life. Different experimental procedures have been used in the laboratory to train a young finch to learn a song.

Traffic noise disrupts vocal development and suppresses immune function.

Noise pollution has been linked to learning and language deficits in children, but the causal mechanisms connecting noise to cognitive deficiencies remain unclear because experimental models are lacking. Here, we investigated the effects of noise on birdsong learning, the primary animal model for vocal learning and speech development in humans. We found that traffic noise exposure retarded vocal development and led to learning inaccuracies.

Auditory perception of self and others in zebra finches: evidence from an operant discrimination task.

Vocal communication is essential for social interactions in many animal species. For this purpose, an animal has to perceive vocal signals of conspecifics and is often also required to discriminate conspecifics. The capacity to discriminate conspecifics is particularly important in social species in which individuals interact repeatedly.

Mechanisms of recognition in birds and social Hymenoptera: from detection to information processing.

In this opinion piece, we briefly review our knowledge of the mechanisms underlying auditory individual recognition in birds and chemical nest-mate recognition in social Hymenoptera. We argue that even though detection and perception of recognition cues are well studied in social Hymenoptera, the neural mechanisms remain a black box. We compare our knowledge of these insect systems with that of the well-studied avian 'song control system'.

Individual vocal recognition in zebra finches relies on song syllable structure rather than song syllable order.

Many species are able to vocally recognize individual conspecifics and this capacity seems widespread in oscine songbirds. The exact acoustic features used for such recognition are often not clear. In the zebra finch (), the song motif is composed of a few syllables repeated in a fixed sequential order and song bouts include several repetitions of the motif.

Consistency of female preference for male song in the domestic canary using two measures: Operant conditioning and vocal response.

Variation of female preferences is often reported in the literature and could be related to an artefact derived from multiple different methods used. Thus, there is a need to evaluate the influence of different methods when assessing female preferences. The present study aims to compare female preferences obtained from an operant conditioning test and from female vocal responses to male song in the domestic canary (Serinus canaria).

The perception of self in birds.

The perception of self is an important topic in several disciplines such as ethology, behavioral ecology, psychology, developmental and cognitive neuroscience. Self-perception is investigated by experimentally exposing different species of animals to self-stimuli such as their own image, smell or vocalizations. Here we review more than one hundred studies using these methods in birds, a taxonomic group that exhibits a rich diversity regarding ecology and behavior.

Horizontal transmission of the father's song in the zebra finch (Taeniopygia guttata).

As is the case for human speech, birdsong is transmitted across generations by imitative learning. Although transfer of song patterns from adults to juveniles typically occurs via vertical or oblique transmission, there is also evidence of horizontal transmission between juveniles of the same generation. Here, we show that a young male zebra finch (Taeniopygia guttata) that has been exposed to its father during the sensitive period for song learning can lead a brother, that has never heard the paternal song, to imitate some sounds of the father.

Representation of early sensory experience in the adult auditory midbrain: implications for vocal learning.

Vocal learning in songbirds and humans occurs by imitation of adult vocalizations. In both groups, vocal learning includes a perceptual phase during which juveniles birds and infants memorize adult vocalizations. Despite intensive research, the neural mechanisms supporting this auditory memory are still poorly understood.

Heterospecific exposure affects the development of secondary sexual traits in male zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata).

In many animal species, social signals can affect the reproductive physiology and behaviour of conspecifics. In a few species that exhibit vocal learning, exposure to conspecific and sometimes heterospecific sounds can also influence their vocal development. Here we show that heterospecific exposure can affect the development of secondary sexual traits of male zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata).

Comparisons of different methods to train a young zebra finch (Taeniopygia guttata) to learn a song.

Like humans, oscine songbirds exhibit vocal learning. They learn their song by imitating conspecifics, mainly adults. Among them, the zebra finch (Taeniopygia guttata) has been widely used as a model species to study the behavioral, cellular and molecular substrates of vocal learning.

Melatonin affects the temporal pattern of vocal signatures in birds.

In humans and other animals, melatonin is involved in the control of circadian biological rhythms. Here, we show that melatonin affects the temporal pattern of behavioral sequences in a noncircadian manner. The zebra finch (Taeniopygia guttata) song and the crow of the Japanese quail (Coturnix japonica) are courtship vocalizations composed of a stereotyped sequence of syllables.

Interspecific hybridization as a tool to understand vocal divergence: the example of crowing in quail (Genus Coturnix).

Understanding the mechanisms that lead organisms to be separated into distinct species remains a challenge in evolutionary biology. Interspecific hybridization, which results from incomplete reproductive isolation, is a useful tool to investigate such mechanisms. In birds, interspecific hybridization is relatively frequent, despite the fact that closed species exhibit morphological and behavioural differences.

The genetic basis of zebra finch vocalizations.

Animal vocalizations play an important role in individual recognition, kin recognition, species recognition, and sexual selection. Despite much work in these fields done on birds virtually nothing is known about the heritability of vocal traits in birds. Here, we study a captive population of more than 800 zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata) with regard to the quantitative genetics of call and song characteristics.

Dynamics of crowing development in the domestic Japanese quail (Coturnix coturnix japonica).

Species-specific behaviours gradually emerge, via incomplete patterns, to the final complete adult form. A classical example is birdsong, a learned behaviour ideally suited for studying the neural and molecular substrates of vocal learning. Young songbirds gradually transform primitive unstructured vocalizations (subsong, akin to human babbling) into complex, stereotyped sequences of syllables that constitute adult song.

How sleep affects the developmental learning of bird song.

Sleep affects learning and development in humans and other animals, but the role of sleep in developmental learning has never been examined. Here we show the effects of night-sleep on song development in the zebra finch by recording and analysing the entire song ontogeny. During periods of rapid learning we observed a pronounced deterioration in song structure after night-sleep.

Classification of hybrid crows in quail using artificial neural networks.

In galliforms, calls are strongly determined genetically and no influence of learning has ever been demonstrated. Hybridization is a useful tool for investigating patterns of heritability. The vocal repertoire of the European quail (Coturnix c.