Basic Mechanisms and Evolution of Acoustic Communication

将以树蛙为模型系统，研究阐明声学通信的基本机制和演化。这些动物产生刻板的发声，并有选择地对合成信号的回放做出反应，合成信号包含有关潜在配偶的物种和质量的信息。这个项目的目标是：(1)量化雌性树蛙在有或没有具有相似叫声的密切相关物种的情况下的选择性程度；(2)确定雌性树蛙在多大程度上避开发出另一个物种的叫声的附近声源，以到达同一物种吸引人的叫声的远处来源；以及(3)确定人工诱导的染色体数量变化是否会影响雄性叫声的关键特征以及雌性对这些关键特征的选择性。最后一项研究的目的是了解两种灰树蛙染色体数量的自然差异是否至少在一定程度上导致了它们交流系统的差异。树蛙的声音交流比许多其他种类的动物更容易研究，但从格哈特博士的研究中得出的一般原理，将有助于人们越来越科学地理解交流系统，以及它们如何在各种不同物种的繁殖和生存中发挥作用。这种了解对于控制害虫物种以及保护濒危或有经济价值的物种都很有价值。

Research will be conducted to elucidate basic mechanisms and evolution of acoustic communication, using treefrogs as a model system. These animals produce stereotyped vocalizations and respond selectively to playbacks of synthetic signals that contain features that carry information about the species and quality of a potential mate. The goals of this project are: (1) to quantify the degree of selectivity of female treefrogs in the presence and in the absence of a closely-related species with similar calls; (2) to determine the extent to which females avoid a nearby sound source that emits calls of another species in order to reach a distant source of attractive calls of the same species; and (3) to determine if artificially-induced changes in chromosome number affect key features of the calls of males and the selectivity of females for those key features. The last study is aimed at learning if the natural difference in chromosome number in two species of gray treefrogs is responsible, at least in part, for differences in their communication systems. The acoustic communication of treefrogs is easier to study than that of many other kinds of animals, but the general principles that emerge from Dr. Gerhardt's research will contribute to growing scientific understanding of communication systems and how they work in reproduction and survival of a wide range of diverse species. Such understanding is valuable for control of pest species as well as for protection of endangered or economically valuable species.