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RESEARCH INTERESTS
Behavioral physiology of acoustic communication
physical mechanisms of avian sound generation
motor integration of song production
auditory feedback in song learning
metabolic cost of singing
PUBLICATIONS
Poster
How songbirds generate sound
Animals have exploited most sensory modalities for
communication. Extensive research has focused on acoustic
communication systems including vocal communication in
humans and birds. Especially singing behavior in songbirds,
with its parallels to human speech, has become a model
system in several disciplines, such as neuroethology and
behavioral ecology.
Considering the wealth of information on vocal behavior in
birds, it is surprising that many aspects of sound production
are poorly understood or not known. The vocal organ is at
the interface between the neural control, on the one hand,
and the vocal behavior and its ecological and evolutionary
ramifications, on the other. The investigation of vocal
mechanisms is therefore not only interesting from a
physiological point of view, but has great interdisciplinary
potential.
Our research efforts focus on sound generating mechanisms
of birds, but range from physical and neurobiological aspects
of sound production to the behavioral ecology and evolution
of vocal communication.
In collaboration with Dr. Ole N. Larsen (Odense University,
Denmark), we have developed several new methods
(endoscopy, laser vibration detection) that enable us to study
the physical aspects of sound generation in the intact vocal
organ. These approaches can be used to test various
hypotheses on sound generation by the avian syrinx. The
ultimate goal of this line of research is to study sound
production mechanisms in different groups of birds.
Comparative data on vocal mechanisms will allow us to
address questions about the evolution of vocal communication
in birds.
Sound production involves the coordination of several motor
systems. The two main systems involved in phonation are
the respiratory system (expiratory and inspiratory muscles)
and the muscles of the vocal organ (syringeal muscles). The
major focus of our research in this area is to characterize the
role of different muscle groups in sound production and
modification. Once we understand the contribution of
individual muscles, we can focus on the coordination of
different muscles within and between motor systems. It is
necessary to know the specific tasks of motor control in
order to understand central motor coordination and
integration. Moreover, by comparing motor patterns of
different species we can also address evolutionary questions
of song complexity and song organization. Because song is a
learned behavior, aspects of motor coordination are also of
interest from a developmental perspective.
How costly is vocal behavior? Males of many species sing
very frequently during the breeding season, but the energetic
requirements of this behavior are largely unknown. Using
measurements of oxygen consumption and analyses of
respiratory dynamics during song, we try to estimate the
energetic costs of singing and respiratory constraints on song
complexity. Results from this research will contribute to our
understanding of selective pressures on song evolution.
Selected PUblications
Goller, F. M.A. Daley (2001): Novel motor gestures for phonation during inspiration enhance acoustic complexity of birdsong. Proc. Roy. Soc. Lond. B., in press.
Oberweger, K. and F. Goller (2001): The metabolic cost of birdsong production. J. exp. Biol., in press.
Larsen, O.N. and F. Goller (1999): Role of syringeal vibrations in bird vocalisations. Proc. Roy. Soc. Lond. B., 266:1609-1615.
Suthers, R.A., F. Goller & C. Pytte (1999): The neuromuscular control of birdsong. Phil. Trans. Roy. Soc. Lond. B, 354:927-939.
Goller, F. and O.N. Larsen (1997): A new mechanism of sound generation in songbirds. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 94:14787-14791.
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