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First published online July 17, 2009
Journal of Experimental Biology 212, 2411-2418 (2009)
Published by The Company of Biologists 2009
doi: 10.1242/jeb.028456
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Song competition changes the brain and behavior of a male songbird

Keith W. Sockman1,2,*, Katrina G. Salvante1,{dagger}, Danielle M. Racke1,{ddagger}, C. Ryan Campbell1,§ and Buddy A. Whitman1,¶

1 Department of Biology, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA
2 Curriculum in Neurobiology, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA

* Author for correspondence (e-mail: kws{at}unc.edu)

Accepted 12 May 2009

Males should adjust their behavior and its neural substrates according to the quality of competition that they assess by eavesdropping on other males' courtship signals. In European starlings (Sturnus vulgaris), females base mate choice, in part, on aspects of male song associated with its length, which positively correlates with the males' reproductive success, immunocompetence, age and ability to repel competing males. To determine how variation in the quality of male courtship song affects the brain and behavior of incidental male receivers, we exposed adult male starlings to either long or short songs periodically over 7 days, followed by 1 day of no song. We found no difference between groups in the length (i.e. quality) of songs that subjects produced during the experiment. However, compared with males exposed to short songs, those exposed to long songs sang more songs, exhibited more non-singing activity and, by the end of the experiment, weighed less and had a 30% larger robust nucleus of the arcopallium (RA), a forebrain nucleus that translates pre-motor signals into the appropriate combination of respiratory and syringeal activity. The change in RA volume was not entirely due to variation in song output, suggesting, for the first time, the possibility of acoustically driven plasticity in this motor nucleus. We hypothesize that such neuroplasticity helps prepare the individual for future song output tailored to the prevailing competitive environment.

Key words: bird song, European starling (Sturnus vulgaris), intra-specific competition, neuroplasticity, robust nucleus of the arcopallium (RA), song-control system


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