Publication Date:
2022-05-25
Description:
Author Posting. © The Author(s), 20113. This is the author's version of the work. It is posted here by permission of Taylor & Francis for personal use, not for redistribution. The definitive version was published in Ethology Ecology & Evolution 26 (2014): 392-404, doi:10.1080/03949370.2013.851122.
Description:
Genetic studies have shown that there are small but significant differences
between the short-beaked common dolphin populations in the Atlantic Ocean and
those in the Mediterranean Sea. The short-beaked common dolphin is a highly vocal
species with a wide sound production repertoire including whistles. Whistles are
continuous, narrowband, frequency-modulated signals that can show geographic
variation in dolphin species. This study tests whether the differences, highlighted by
genetic studies, are recognisable in the acoustic features of short-beaked common
dolphin’s whistles in the two adjacent areas of the Atlantic Ocean and the
Mediterranean Sea. From a selected sample of good quality whistles (514 recorded
in the Atlantic and 193 in the Mediterranean) 10 parameters of duration, frequency
and frequency modulation were measured. Comparing data among basins, differences
were found for duration and all frequency parameters except for minimum
frequency. Modulation parameters showed the highest coefficient of variation.
Through discriminant analysis we correctly assigned 75.7% of sounds to their basins.
Furthermore, micro-geographic analysis revealed similarity between the sounds
recorded around the Azores and the Canary archipelagos and between the Bay of
Biscay and the Mediterranean Sea. Results are in agreement with the hypothesis
proposed by previous genetic studies that two distinct populations are present, still supposing a gene flow between the basins. This study is the first to compare shortbeaked
common dolphin’s whistles of the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean
areas.
Description:
Data collection and processing in the Azores was conducted
under projects POCTI/BSE/38991/01, PTDC/MAR/74071/2006 and M2.1.2/F/012/2011, supported by
FCT (Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia) and DRCTC/SRCTE (Secretaria Regional de
Ciência, Tecnologia e Equipamentos), FEDER funds, the Competitiveness Factors Operational
(COMPETE), QREN European Social Fund and Proconvergencia Açores Program. We acknowledge
funds provided by FCT to LARSyS Associated Laboratory & IMAR-University of the Azores/
the Thematic Area E of the Strategic Project (OE & Compete) and by the DRCTC – Government of
the Azores pluriannual funding. M.A. Silva was supported by an FCT postdoctoral grant (SFRH/
BPD/29841/2006). I. Cascão and R. Prieto were supported by FCT doctoral grants (SFRH/BD/
41192/2007 and SFRH/BD/32520/2006, respectively) and R. Prieto by a research grant from the Azores Regional Fund for Science and Technology (M3.1.5/F/115/2012). Data collection by SECAC
(Society for the Study of Cetaceans in the Canary Archipelago) was funded by the U.E. LIFE
programme – project LIFE INDEMARES (LIFE 07/NAT/E/000732)- and the Fundación
Biodiversidad, under the Spanish Ministry of Environment, Rural and Marine Affairs (project
ZEC-TURSIOPS).
Description:
2014-11-05
Keywords:
Short-beaked common dolphin
;
Intra-specific differences
;
Geographic variation
;
Mediterranean
;
Atlantic
;
Whistles
Repository Name:
Woods Hole Open Access Server
Type:
Preprint
Format:
application/pdf
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