Caller sex and orientation influence spectral characteristics of "two-voice" stereotyped calls produced by free-ranging killer whales

This study investigates how particular received spectral characteristics of stereotyped calls of sexually dimorphic adult killer whales may be influenced by caller sex, orientation, and range. Calls were ascribed to individuals during natural behavior using a towed beamforming array. The fundamental...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America 2007-06, Vol.121 (6), p.3932-3937
Main Authors: Miller, Patrick J. O., Samarra, Filipa I. P., Perthuison, Aurélie D.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Acoustics
Animals
Animals, Wild
Exact sciences and technology
Female
Fundamental areas of phenomenology (including applications)
Male
Models, Biological
Physics
Sex Characteristics
Stereotyped Behavior
Underwater sound
Vocalization, Animal
Whale, Killer - physiology
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Summary:This study investigates how particular received spectral characteristics of stereotyped calls of sexually dimorphic adult killer whales may be influenced by caller sex, orientation, and range. Calls were ascribed to individuals during natural behavior using a towed beamforming array. The fundamental frequency of both high-frequency and low-frequency components did not differ consistently by sex. The ratio of peak energy within the fundamental of the high-frequency component relative to summed peak energy in the first two low-frequency component harmonics, and the number of modulation bands off the high-frequency component, were significantly greater when whales were oriented towards the array, while range and adult sex had little effect. In contrast, the ratio of peak energy in the first versus second harmonics of the low-frequency component was greater in calls produced by adult females than adult males, while orientation and range had little effect. The dispersion of energy across harmonics has been shown to relate to body size or sex in terrestrial species, but pressure effects during diving are thought to make such a signal unreliable in diving animals. The observed spectral differences by signaler sex and orientation suggest that these types of information may be transmitted acoustically by freely diving killer whales.
ISSN:0001-4966
1520-8524
DOI:10.1121/1.2722056