Chest beats as an honest signal of body size in male mountain gorillas (Gorilla beringei beringei)

Abstract Acoustic signals that reliably indicate body size, which usually determines competitive ability, are of particular interest for understanding how animals assess rivals and choose mates. Whereas body size tends to be negatively associated with formant dispersion in animal vocalizations, non-...

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Autores principales:	Edward Wright, Sven Grawunder, Eric Ndayishimiye, Jordi Galbany, Shannon C. McFarlin, Tara S. Stoinski, Martha M. Robbins
Formato:	article
Lenguaje:	EN
Publicado:	Nature Portfolio 2021
Materias:	Medicine R Science Q
Acceso en línea:	https://doaj.org/article/21454aed48914413beb86dc54da4a2ca
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spelling	oai:doaj.org-article:21454aed48914413beb86dc54da4a2ca2021-12-02T18:15:24ZChest beats as an honest signal of body size in male mountain gorillas (Gorilla beringei beringei)10.1038/s41598-021-86261-82045-2322https://doaj.org/article/21454aed48914413beb86dc54da4a2ca2021-04-01T00:00:00Zhttps://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-86261-8https://doaj.org/toc/2045-2322Abstract Acoustic signals that reliably indicate body size, which usually determines competitive ability, are of particular interest for understanding how animals assess rivals and choose mates. Whereas body size tends to be negatively associated with formant dispersion in animal vocalizations, non-vocal signals have received little attention. Among the most emblematic sounds in the animal kingdom is the chest beat of gorillas, a non-vocal signal that is thought to be important in intra and inter-sexual competition, yet it is unclear whether it reliably indicates body size. We examined the relationship among body size (back breadth), peak frequency, and three temporal characteristics of the chest beat: duration, number of beats and beat rate from sound recordings of wild adult male mountain gorillas. Using linear mixed models, we found that larger males had significantly lower peak frequencies than smaller ones, but we found no consistent relationship between body size and the temporal characteristics measured. Taken together with earlier findings of positive correlations among male body size, dominance rank and reproductive success, we conclude that the gorilla chest beat is an honest signal of competitive ability. These results emphasize the potential of non-vocal signals to convey important information in mammal communication.Edward WrightSven GrawunderEric NdayishimiyeJordi GalbanyShannon C. McFarlinTara S. StoinskiMartha M. RobbinsNature PortfolioarticleMedicineRScienceQENScientific Reports, Vol 11, Iss 1, Pp 1-8 (2021)
institution	DOAJ
collection	DOAJ
language	EN
topic	Medicine R Science Q
spellingShingle	Medicine R Science Q Edward Wright Sven Grawunder Eric Ndayishimiye Jordi Galbany Shannon C. McFarlin Tara S. Stoinski Martha M. Robbins Chest beats as an honest signal of body size in male mountain gorillas (Gorilla beringei beringei)
description	Abstract Acoustic signals that reliably indicate body size, which usually determines competitive ability, are of particular interest for understanding how animals assess rivals and choose mates. Whereas body size tends to be negatively associated with formant dispersion in animal vocalizations, non-vocal signals have received little attention. Among the most emblematic sounds in the animal kingdom is the chest beat of gorillas, a non-vocal signal that is thought to be important in intra and inter-sexual competition, yet it is unclear whether it reliably indicates body size. We examined the relationship among body size (back breadth), peak frequency, and three temporal characteristics of the chest beat: duration, number of beats and beat rate from sound recordings of wild adult male mountain gorillas. Using linear mixed models, we found that larger males had significantly lower peak frequencies than smaller ones, but we found no consistent relationship between body size and the temporal characteristics measured. Taken together with earlier findings of positive correlations among male body size, dominance rank and reproductive success, we conclude that the gorilla chest beat is an honest signal of competitive ability. These results emphasize the potential of non-vocal signals to convey important information in mammal communication.
format	article
author	Edward Wright Sven Grawunder Eric Ndayishimiye Jordi Galbany Shannon C. McFarlin Tara S. Stoinski Martha M. Robbins
author_facet	Edward Wright Sven Grawunder Eric Ndayishimiye Jordi Galbany Shannon C. McFarlin Tara S. Stoinski Martha M. Robbins
author_sort	Edward Wright
title	Chest beats as an honest signal of body size in male mountain gorillas (Gorilla beringei beringei)
title_short	Chest beats as an honest signal of body size in male mountain gorillas (Gorilla beringei beringei)
title_full	Chest beats as an honest signal of body size in male mountain gorillas (Gorilla beringei beringei)
title_fullStr	Chest beats as an honest signal of body size in male mountain gorillas (Gorilla beringei beringei)
title_full_unstemmed	Chest beats as an honest signal of body size in male mountain gorillas (Gorilla beringei beringei)
title_sort	chest beats as an honest signal of body size in male mountain gorillas (gorilla beringei beringei)
publisher	Nature Portfolio
publishDate	2021
url	https://doaj.org/article/21454aed48914413beb86dc54da4a2ca
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Chest beats as an honest signal of body size in male mountain gorillas (Gorilla beringei beringei)

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