Symposium number: 42

Title: BIOACOUSTICS: PURE AND APPLIED ASPECTS

Principal organizer: Peter McGregor
Centre for Applied Zoology, Cornwall College, Wildflower Lane, Trenance Gardens, Newquay TR7 2LZ, Cornwall, UK
email: peter.mcgregor@cornwall.ac.uk

Second organizer: Georg Klump
Zoophysiology and Behaviour Group, Institute for Biology and Environmental Science, Oldenburg University, D-26111 Oldenburg, Germany
email: georg.klump@uni-oldenburg.de

First keynote speaker: Vincent Bretagnolle
CNRS de Chize, 79360 Villiers-en-bois, France
Title of first keynote paper: Using bird vocalisations as individual tags: prospects for the conservation of threatened species in counts, survival rates and population structure

Second keynote speaker: Ulrike Langemann
Institute for Biology and Environmental Science, Oldenburg University, D-26111 Oldenburg, Germany
Title of second keynote paper: Auditory perception and communication limits

Contributed talks

Symposium description: Birds use acoustic signals as their main means of communication, and have evolved many adaptations in signal production and perception which play an important role for their reproduction and survival. So an understanding of the evolution of acoustic signal patterns used, and the mechanisms of auditory perception, can contribute to conservation efforts. This symposium offers examples of how basic bioacoustic research has applications in conservation. For example, birds have developed mechanisms that enable them to cope with environmental noise. Knowing the perceptual limits of the mechanisms that allow birds to detect communication sounds among background noise will enable evaluation of the impact of traffic noise and other acoustic disturbances from human activity. Knowing how birds habituate to sounds will help in assessing potential disturbance from particular sources. And knowing the variation in the patterns of sounds within and between individuals of a certain species will allow us to evaluate the suitability of bird vocalizations as "tags" for individual identification. The two keynote talks will provide reviews on both the perception and the sound production sides of the issue. Further contributed papers that connect bioacoustics with conservation are welcome.

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