Studying Vibrational Communication

This volume explains the key ideas, questions and methods involved in studying the hidden world of vibrational communication in animals. The authors dispel the notion that this form of communication is difficult to study and show how vibrational signaling is a key to social interactions in species that live in contact with a substrate, whether it be a grassy lawn, a rippling stream or a tropical forest canopy. This ancient and widespread form of social exchange is also remarkably understudied. A frontier in animal behavior, it offers unparalleled opportunities for discovery and for addressing general questions in communication and social evolution. In addition to reviews of advances made in the study of several animal taxa, this volume also explores topics such as vibrational communication networks, the interaction of acoustic and vibrational communication, the history of the field, the evolution of signal production and reception and establishing a common vocabulary.

This volume is a self-contained companion piece to Studying Vibrational Communication, published in 2014 within the same series. The field has expanded considerably since then, and has even acquired a name of its own: biotremology. In this context, the book reports on new concepts in this fascinating discipline, and features chapters on state-of-the art methods for studying behavior tied to substrate-borne vibrations, as well as an entire section on applied biotremology. Also included are a historical contribution by pioneers in the field and several chapters reviewing the advances that have been made regarding specific animal taxa. Other new topics covered are vibrational communication in vertebrates, multimodal communication, and biotremology in the classroom, as well as in art and music. Given its scope, the book will appeal to all those interested in communication and vibrational behavior, but also to those seeking to learn about an ancient mode of communication.

This volume is a self-contained companion piece to Studying Vibrational Communication, published in 2014 within the same series. The field has expanded considerably since then, and has even acquired a name of its own: biotremology. In this context, the book reports on new concepts in this fascinating discipline, and features chapters on state-of-the art methods for studying behavior tied to substrate-borne vibrations, as well as an entire section on applied biotremology. Also included are a historical contribution by pioneers in the field and several chapters reviewing the advances that have been made regarding specific animal taxa. Other new topics covered are vibrational communication in vertebrates, multimodal communication, and biotremology in the classroom, as well as in art and music. Given its scope, the book will appeal to all those interested in communication and vibrational behavior, but also to those seeking to learn about an ancient mode of communication.

In creatures as different as crickets and scorpions, mole rats and elephants, there exists an overlooked channel of communication: signals transmitted as vibrations through a solid substrate. Peggy Hill summarizes a generation of groundbreaking work by scientists around the world on this long understudied form of animal communication. Beginning in the 1970s, Hill explains, powerful computers and listening devices allowed scientists to record and interpret vibrational signals. Whether the medium is the sunbaked savannah or the stem of a plant, vibrations can be passed along from an animal to a potential mate, or intercepted by a predator on the prowl. Vibration appears to be an ancient means of communication, widespread in both invertebrate and vertebrate taxa. Hill synthesizes in this book a flowering of research, field studies documenting vibrational signals in the wild, and the laboratory experiments that answered such questions as what adaptations allowed animals to send and receive signals, how they use signals in different contexts, and how vibration as a channel might have evolved. Vibrational Communication in Animals promises to become a foundational text for the next generation of researchers putting an ear to the ground.

In creatures as different as crickets and scorpions, mole rats and elephants, there exists an overlooked channel of communication: signals transmitted as vibrations through a solid substrate. Peggy Hill summarizes a generation of groundbreaking work by scientists around the world on this long understudied form of animal communication. Beginning in the 1970s, Hill explains, powerful computers and listening devices allowed scientists to record and interpret vibrational signals. Whether the medium is the sunbaked savannah or the stem of a plant, vibrations can be passed along from an animal to a potential mate, or intercepted by a predator on the prowl. Vibration appears to be an ancient means of communication, widespread in both invertebrate and vertebrate taxa. Hill synthesizes in this book a flowering of research, field studies documenting vibrational signals in the wild, and the laboratory experiments that answered such questions as what adaptations allowed animals to send and receive signals, how they use signals in different contexts, and how vibration as a channel might have evolved. Vibrational Communication in Animals promises to become a foundational text for the next generation of researchers putting an ear to the ground.

Insect Hearing provides a broadly based view of the functions, mechanisms, and evolution of hearing in insects. With a single exception, the chapters focus on problems of hearing and their solutions, rather than being focused on particular taxa. The exception, hearing in Drosophila, is justified because, due to its ever growing toolbox of genetic and optical techniques, Drosophila is rapidly becoming one of the most important model systems in neurobiology, including the neurobiology of hearing. Auditory systems, whether insectan or vertebrate, must perform a number of basic tasks: capturing mechanical stimuli and transducing these into neural activity, representing the timing and frequency of sound signals, distinguishing between behaviorally relevant signals and other sounds and localizing sound sources. Studying how these are accomplished in insects offers a valuable comparative view that helps to reveal general principles of auditory function.

Advances in Insect Physiology, Volume 61 highlights new advances in the field, with this new volume presenting interesting chapters on a variety of timely topics, including Acoustic signaling in Orthoptera, Sound production in Drosophila melanogaster, and Communication by surface borne mechanical waves in insects. Provides the authority and expertise of leading contributors from an international board of authors Presents the latest release in the Advances in Insect Physiology series