Do red deer stags (Cervus elaphus) use roar fundamental frequency (F0) to assess rivals?

ABSTRACT: It is well established that in humans, male voices are disproportionately lower pitched than female voices, and recent studies suggest that this dimorphism in fundamental frequency (F0) results from both intrasexual (male competition) and intersexual (female mate choice) selection for lower pitched voices in men. However, comparative investigations indicate that sexual dimorphism in F0 is not universal in terrestrial mammals. In the highly polygynous and sexually dimorphic Scottish red deer Cervus elaphus scoticus, more successful males give sexually-selected calls (roars) with higher minimum F0s, suggesting that high, rather than low F0s advertise quality in this subspecies. While playback experiments demonstrated that oestrous females prefer higher pitched roars, the potential role of ro

SUBMITTER: Garcia M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3875517 | biostudies-literature | 2013

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature