Role of gender, season, and familiarity in discrimination of conspecific song by zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata)

Abstract

Operant conditioning techniques were used to assess how gender and song familiarity affect song discrimination in adult zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata). Twenty-five males and females, divided into five cohorts, were trained to discriminate between conspecific songs at different times of year. Males discriminating between their own and another song from their own aviary reached criterion in the fewest number of trials, followed by males discriminating between two songs from their own aviary, then by males discriminating between songs they had not heard before. Females discriminating between two songs from their own aviary required more trials than males to reach criterion, but, unlike in males, song familiarity did not have a significant effect on song discrimination by females. The number of trials required to reach criterion was greater in winter than in summer, suggesting a photoperiodic effect in what has been regarded as a nonphotoperiodic species. Gender, season, and familiarity appear to affect how zebra finches discriminate between conspecific songs.