1. Introduction
Hormones have profound effects on behavior, bridging the external and
internal environments. Certain external events, such as changes in photoperiod or the social environment, are perceived by an animal and are transduced into adaptive behavioral changes via effects on hormone secretion.
Hormones modulate behavior by altering cellular physiology in a global
and coordinated fashion. In this chapter, we will review how hormones
modulate behaviors involved in acoustic communication.
Social communication is integral to animal survival and reproduction.
In many species, communication takes the form of vocal production and
acoustic perception. In acoustic communication, endocrine state is an
important determinant of what signal is transmitted and how it is perceived.
Gonadal steroids, for example, have profound effects both on male
courtship vocalizations and on the responses of females to male calls. Our
aim in this chapter is to examine the physiological mechanisms whereby
hormones affect acoustic signaling and perception. Most of the information
available concentrates on a few species: birds, frogs, rodents, and fish.
Although it is phylogenetically narrow in scope, we are beginning to form
an in-depth picture of some aspects of endocrine modulation, even at the
molecular level.
Hormonal influences on acoustic communication can be studied at a
variety of levels. The first and critical step is to identify which, if any,
hormones are involved in vocal production and acoustic perception.
Establishing correlations between signal production/perception and plasma
levels of hormones, and demonstration of the causal relation between a
particular hormone and a communicative behavior, is required before the
physiological substrates can be further studied. The next step is to identify
the neural and somatic substrates for the production and perception of
acoustic signals. We can then determine whether the hormone exerts its
effects directly by binding to the cells that mediate the behavior and, if
so, how. Current technology permits us to examine a large number of
275
6
Hormonal Mechanisms in
Acoustic Communication
Ayako Yamaguchi and Darcy B. Kelley
Hormones have profound effects on behavior, bridging the external and
internal environments. Certain external events, such as changes in photoperiod or the social environment, are perceived by an animal and are transduced into adaptive behavioral changes via effects on hormone secretion.
Hormones modulate behavior by altering cellular physiology in a global
and coordinated fashion. In this chapter, we will review how hormones
modulate behaviors involved in acoustic communication.
Social communication is integral to animal survival and reproduction.
In many species, communication takes the form of vocal production and
acoustic perception. In acoustic communication, endocrine state is an
important determinant of what signal is transmitted and how it is perceived.
Gonadal steroids, for example, have profound effects both on male
courtship vocalizations and on the responses of females to male calls. Our
aim in this chapter is to examine the physiological mechanisms whereby
hormones affect acoustic signaling and perception. Most of the information
available concentrates on a few species: birds, frogs, rodents, and fish.
Although it is phylogenetically narrow in scope, we are beginning to form
an in-depth picture of some aspects of endocrine modulation, even at the
molecular level.
Hormonal influences on acoustic communication can be studied at a
variety of levels. The first and critical step is to identify which, if any,
hormones are involved in vocal production and acoustic perception.
Establishing correlations between signal production/perception and plasma
levels of hormones, and demonstration of the causal relation between a
particular hormone and a communicative behavior, is required before the
physiological substrates can be further studied. The next step is to identify
the neural and somatic substrates for the production and perception of
acoustic signals. We can then determine whether the hormone exerts its
effects directly by binding to the cells that mediate the behavior and, if
so, how. Current technology permits us to examine a large number of
275
6
Hormonal Mechanisms in
Acoustic Communication
Ayako Yamaguchi and Darcy B. Kelley