Greetings All,
Check out this nicely written article regarding the pioneering work
in bioacoustics by Bernie Krause:
http://select.nytimes.com/preview/2007/02/18/magazine/
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I find the theory Bernie proposed very compelling. There has been
further research into the issue of species competing for "air
space." Many species have songs that are somewhat similar and use
similar frequencies. The stronger singing species generally has his
way and the weaker singer waits to fit songs in when he can.
I first noticed this along a canyon creek in Utah when Song Sparrow
would blast out his song. A neighboring Fox Sparrow would usually
follow with his song a few seconds later. This went on so long I was
sure they were not on random time schedules or they would have
overlapped more. The Fox Sparrow was waiting for the Song Sparrow to
go, he then knew there would be a few moments of quiet he could use
for his own song. I believe this was studied in California coastal
brushland for example, where (if I recall correctly) it was found
that Bewick's Wren was the strong singer and Wrentit would wait and
fit in his songs.
No, the species have not evolved a friendly cooperative singing
schedule, it was naive of Bernie's critics to think so. There is as
much competition for air time in densely populated biomes are there
is for air time and frequency space on AM radio in southern
California. Sparcely habitated areas where species are spread thin
over large areas have less competition for air space and this
phenomenon is less of an issue. Bernie noted that the competition
for frequency space is extreme in jungle habitats. I wonder what we
would find in ocean soundscapes?
Well, it's great to be associated with you all, good recording.
Kevin Colver
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