Analysis of Great Call Vocalizations in Captive and Wild Adult White-handed Gibbons (Hylobates lar) — Presentation Detail — Celebration of Scholars

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Analysis of Great Call Vocalizations in Captive and Wild Adult White-handed Gibbons (Hylobates lar)

Name: Cara Hull
Major: Biology
Hometown: Colby, Wisconsin
Faculty Sponsor: Angela Dassow
Other Sponsors:
Type of research: Independent research

Abstract

White-handed gibbons (Hylobates lar) are lesser apes that utilize duets as a form of territorial communication. These duets are sex-specific in which a female will produce a great call while a male will follow with a shorter coda. Previously, it was assumed these call behaviors were innate, however, recent observations have noted captive male H. lar utilizing the female-specific great calls. We hypothesize that the great calls of the captive male gibbon are similar to the great calls of wild and captive female gibbons if the male is producing a true great call. To analyze this, the duration and number of elements of these great calls were measured using Adobe Audition. Complete great call vocalizations were compared using an ANOVA in which we determined that the calls were significantly different across individuals for duration (p-value 3.84E-12) and number of elements (p-value 7.20E-37). A Bonferroni test was run on the results. The following research will produce a more complete understanding as to the influence of life history on vocal behaviors of H. lar. Alongside this, it will allow for a better understanding of the prevalence of vocal plasticity in lesser apes which may expand our overall knowledge about the evolution of vocal communication in other primates and their close relatives.

Poster file