Acoustic cues to individuality in wild male adult African savannah elephants ( Loxodonta africana )

PeerJ

article

Kaja Wierucka¹  Michelle D. Henley²  Hannah S. Mumby¹ 

[1] School of Biological Sciences, University of Hong Kong;Applied Ecosystem and Conservation Research Unit, University of South Africa;Elephants Alive;Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge;Centre for African Ecology, School of Animal, Plant and Environmental Sciences, University of Witwatersrand

关键词: Acoustic cues;    African elephant;    Individual recognition;    Loxodonta africana;    Vocal communication;   

DOI  :  10.7717/peerj.10736

学科分类：社会科学、人文和艺术（综合）

来源: Inra

【 摘 要 】

The ability to recognize conspecifics plays a pivotal role in animal communication systems. It is especially important for establishing and maintaining associations among individuals of social, long-lived species, such as elephants. While research on female elephant sociality and communication is prevalent, until recently male elephants have been considered far less social than females. This resulted in a dearth of information about their communication and recognition abilities. With new knowledge about the intricacies of the male elephant social structure come questions regarding the communication basis that allows for social bonds to be established and maintained. By analyzing the acoustic parameters of social rumbles recorded over 1.5 years from wild, mature, male African savanna elephants (Loxodonta africana) we expand current knowledge about the information encoded within these vocalizations and their potential to facilitate individual recognition. We showed that social rumbles are individually distinct and stable over time and therefore provide an acoustic basis for individual recognition. Furthermore, our results revealed that different frequency parameters contribute to individual differences of these vocalizations.

【 授权许可】

CC BY