The Experts below are selected from a list of 16752 Experts worldwide ranked by ideXlab platform
Purnima Ratilal - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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Vocalization source level distributions and pulse compression gains of diverse baleen whale species in the gulf of maine
Journal of the Acoustical Society of America, 2016Co-Authors: Delin Wang, Wei Huang, Heriberto A. Garcia, Nicholas C. Makris, Purnima RatilalAbstract:The Vocalization source level distributions and pulse compression gains are estimated for four distinct baleen whale species in the Gulf of Maine: blue, fin, minke, and sei. The Vocalizations were received on a large-aperture densely sampled coherent hydrophone array system deployed to monitor marine mammals over instantaneous wide areas using the passive ocean acoustic waveguide remote sensing technique. For each baleen whale species, between 400 to over 1400 measured Vocalizations with significantly high signal-to-noise ratios (SNR>10 dB) after coherent beamforming and localized with high accuracies (<10% localization errors) over ranges spanning roughly 1 km to 38 km are included in the analysis. The whale Vocalization received pressure levels are corrected for broadband transmission losses modelled using a calibrated parabolic equation based acoustic propagation model for a random range-dependent ocean waveguide. The broadband Vocalization equivalent pulse-compression gains are found to be 2.5±1.1 for...
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Vocalization source level distributions and pulse compression gains of diverse baleen whale species in the gulf of maine
Remote Sensing, 2016Co-Authors: Delin Wang, Wei Huang, Heriberto A. Garcia, Purnima RatilalAbstract:The Vocalization source level distributions and pulse compression gains are estimated for four distinct baleen whale species in the Gulf of Maine: fin, sei, minke and an unidentified baleen whale species. The Vocalizations were received on a large-aperture densely-sampled coherent hydrophone array system useful for monitoring marine mammals over instantaneous wide areas via the passive ocean acoustic waveguide remote sensing technique. For each baleen whale species, between 125 and over 1400 measured Vocalizations with significantly high Signal-to-Noise Ratios (SNR > 10 dB) after coherent beamforming and localized with high accuracies (<10% localization errors) over ranges spanning roughly 1 km–30 km are included in the analysis. The whale Vocalization received pressure levels are corrected for broadband transmission losses modeled using a calibrated parabolic equation-based acoustic propagation model for a random range-dependent ocean waveguide. The whale Vocalization source level distributions are characterized by the following means and standard deviations, in units of dB re 1 μ Pa at 1 m: 181.9 ± 5.2 for fin whale 20-Hz pulses, 173.5 ± 3.2 for sei whale downsweep chirps, 177.7 ± 5.4 for minke whale pulse trains and 169.6 ± 3.5 for the unidentified baleen whale species downsweep calls. The broadband Vocalization equivalent pulse-compression gains are found to be 2.5 ± 1.1 for fin whale 20-Hz pulses, 24 ± 10 for the unidentified baleen whale species downsweep calls and 69 ± 23 for sei whale downsweep chirps. These pulse compression gains are found to be roughly proportional to the inter-pulse intervals of the Vocalizations, which are 11 ± 5 s for fin whale 20-Hz pulses, 29 ± 18 for the unidentified baleen whale species downsweep calls and 52 ± 33 for sei whale downsweep chirps. The source level distributions and pulse compression gains are essential for determining signal-to-noise ratios and hence detection regions for baleen whale Vocalizations received passively on underwater acoustic sensing systems, as well as for assessing communication ranges in baleen whales.
Allen F. Mensinger - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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directional sound sensitivity in utricular afferents in the toadfish opsanus tau
The Journal of Experimental Biology, 2015Co-Authors: Allen F. Mensinger, Karen P. MaruskaAbstract:The inner ear of fishes contains three paired otolithic end organs, the saccule, lagena and utricle, which function as biological accelerometers. The saccule is the largest otolith in most fishes and much of our current understanding on auditory function in this diverse group of vertebrates is derived from anatomical and neurophysiological studies on this end organ. In contrast, less is known about how the utricle contributes to auditory functions. In this study, chronically implanted electrodes were used, along with neural telemetry or tethers to record primary afferent responses from the utricular nerve in free-ranging and naturally behaving oyster toadfish Opsanus tau Linnaeus . The hypothesis was that the utricle plays a role in detecting underwater sounds, including conspecific Vocalizations, and exhibits directional sensitivity. Utricular afferents responded best to low frequency (80–200 Hz) pure tones and to playbacks of conspecific boatwhistles and grunts (80–180 Hz fundamental frequency), with the majority of the units (∼75%) displaying a clear, directional response, which may allow the utricle to contribute to sound detection and localization during social interactions. Responses were well within the sound intensity levels of toadfish Vocalization (approximately 140 SPL dBrms re. 1 µPa with fibers sensitive to thresholds of approximately 120 SPL dBrms re. 1 µPa). Neurons were also stimulated by self-generated body movements such as opercular movements and swimming. This study is the first to investigate underwater sound-evoked response properties of primary afferents from the utricle of an unrestrained/unanesthetized free-swimming teleost fish. These data provide experimental evidence that the utricle has an auditory function, and can contribute to directional hearing to facilitate sound localization.
Karen P. Maruska - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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directional sound sensitivity in utricular afferents in the toadfish opsanus tau
The Journal of Experimental Biology, 2015Co-Authors: Allen F. Mensinger, Karen P. MaruskaAbstract:The inner ear of fishes contains three paired otolithic end organs, the saccule, lagena and utricle, which function as biological accelerometers. The saccule is the largest otolith in most fishes and much of our current understanding on auditory function in this diverse group of vertebrates is derived from anatomical and neurophysiological studies on this end organ. In contrast, less is known about how the utricle contributes to auditory functions. In this study, chronically implanted electrodes were used, along with neural telemetry or tethers to record primary afferent responses from the utricular nerve in free-ranging and naturally behaving oyster toadfish Opsanus tau Linnaeus . The hypothesis was that the utricle plays a role in detecting underwater sounds, including conspecific Vocalizations, and exhibits directional sensitivity. Utricular afferents responded best to low frequency (80–200 Hz) pure tones and to playbacks of conspecific boatwhistles and grunts (80–180 Hz fundamental frequency), with the majority of the units (∼75%) displaying a clear, directional response, which may allow the utricle to contribute to sound detection and localization during social interactions. Responses were well within the sound intensity levels of toadfish Vocalization (approximately 140 SPL dBrms re. 1 µPa with fibers sensitive to thresholds of approximately 120 SPL dBrms re. 1 µPa). Neurons were also stimulated by self-generated body movements such as opercular movements and swimming. This study is the first to investigate underwater sound-evoked response properties of primary afferents from the utricle of an unrestrained/unanesthetized free-swimming teleost fish. These data provide experimental evidence that the utricle has an auditory function, and can contribute to directional hearing to facilitate sound localization.
G Serafini - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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Acoustic structure of Vocalization and stapedius muscle activity during vocal development in chickens (Gallus gallus).
Journal of comparative physiology. A Sensory neural and behavioral physiology, 1993Co-Authors: Silvarosa Grassi, Fabrizio Ottaviani, Domenico Bambagioni, G SerafiniAbstract:The link between stapedius muscle activity and acoustic structure of Vocalization was analysed in cocks of age 20-30 to 90-100 days old. The results show that stapedius muscle activation depends on the acoustic structure of Vocalization and changes during vocal development. This dependence was observed in spontaneous calls and in Vocalizations elicited by stimulating the mesencephalic "calling area". In 30-day-old cocks stapedius muscle EMG response is never associated with Vocalizations with an acoustic energy content which is always distributed at frequencies higher than 2000 Hz. The coupling between Vocalization and stapedius muscle activity begins later, when birds produce Vocalizations with acoustic energy shifted towards lower frequencies. Overall, stapedius muscle activity is related to a bird's production of high amplitude low frequencies. These results support the hypothesis that the primary role of the stapedius muscle during normal vocal development is to dampen the amplitude of low frequency energy that reaches the cochlea during Vocalization.
Christine V Portfors - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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black jacobin hummingbirds vocalize above the known hearing range of birds
Current Biology, 2018Co-Authors: Christopher R Olson, Marcela Fernandezvargas, Christine V Portfors, Claudio V MelloAbstract:Summary Hummingbirds are a fascinating group of birds, but some aspects of their biology are poorly understood, such as their highly diverse vocal behaviors. We show here that the predominant Vocalization of black jacobins ( Florisuga fusca ), a hummingbird prevalent in the mountains of the Brazilian Atlantic Forest, consists of a triplet of syllables with high fundamental frequency (mean F0 ∼11.8 kHz), rapid frequency oscillations and strong ultrasonic harmonics and no detectable elements below ∼10 kHz. These are the most common Vocalizations of these birds, and their frequency range is above the known hearing range of any bird species recorded to date, including hearing specialists such as owls. These observations suggest that black jacobins either have an atypically high frequency hearing range, or alternatively their primary Vocalization has a yet unknown function unrelated to vocal communication. Black jacobin Vocalizations challenge current notions about vocal communication in birds.
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discrimination of ultrasonic Vocalizations by cba caj mice mus musculus is related to spectrotemporal dissimilarity of Vocalizations
PLOS ONE, 2014Co-Authors: Erikson G Neilans, Christine V Portfors, David P Holfoth, Kelly E Radziwon, Micheal L DentAbstract:The function of ultrasonic Vocalizations (USVs) produced by mice (Mus musculus) is a topic of broad interest to many researchers. These USVs differ widely in spectrotemporal characteristics, suggesting different categories of Vocalizations, although this has never been behaviorally demonstrated. Although electrophysiological studies indicate that neurons can discriminate among Vocalizations at the level of the auditory midbrain, perceptual acuity for Vocalizations has yet to be determined. Here, we trained CBA/CaJ mice using operant conditioning to discriminate between different Vocalizations and between a spectrotemporally modified Vocalization and its original version. Mice were able to discriminate between Vocalization types and between manipulated Vocalizations, with performance negatively correlating with spectrotemporal similarity. That is, discrimination performance was higher for dissimilar Vocalizations and much lower for similar Vocalizations. The behavioral data match previous neurophysiological results in the inferior colliculus (IC), using the same stimuli. These findings suggest that the different Vocalizations could carry different meanings for the mice. Furthermore, the finding that behavioral discrimination matched neural discrimination in the IC suggests that the IC plays an important role in the perceptual discrimination of Vocalizations.
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engineered deafness reveals that mouse courtship Vocalizations do not require auditory experience
The Journal of Neuroscience, 2013Co-Authors: Elena J Mahrt, David J Perkel, Ling Tong, Edwin W Rubel, Christine V PortforsAbstract:Auditory experience during development is necessary for normal language acquisition in humans. Although songbirds, some cetaceans, and maybe bats may also be vocal learners, vocal learning has yet to be well established for a laboratory mammal. Mice are potentially an excellent model organism for studying mechanisms underlying vocal communication. Mice vocalize in different social contexts, yet whether they learn their Vocalizations remains unresolved. To address this question, we compared ultrasonic courtship Vocalizations emitted by chronically deaf and normal hearing adult male mice. We deafened CBA/CaJ male mice, engineered to express diphtheria toxin (DT) receptors in hair cells, by systemic injection of DT at postnatal day 2 (P2). By P9, almost all inner hair cells were absent and by P16 all inner and outer hair cells were absent in DTR mice. These mice did not show any auditory brainstem responses as adults. Wild-type littermates, also treated with DT at P2, had normal hair cells and normal auditory brainstem responses. We compared the temporal structure of Vocalization bouts, the types of Vocalizations, the patterns of syllables, and the acoustic features of each syllable type emitted by hearing and deaf males in the presence of a female. We found that almost all of the Vocalization features we examined were similar in hearing and deaf animals. These findings indicate that mice do not need auditory experience during development to produce normal ultrasonic Vocalizations in adulthood. We conclude that mouse courtship Vocalizations are not acquired through auditory feedback-dependent learning.
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over representation of species specific Vocalizations in the awake mouse inferior colliculus
Neuroscience, 2009Co-Authors: Christine V Portfors, Patrick D Roberts, K JonsonAbstract:Social Vocalizations are particularly important stimuli in an animal's auditory environment. Because of their importance, Vocalizations should be strongly represented in auditory pathways. Mice commonly emit ultrasonic Vocalizations with spectral content between 45 and 100 kHz. However, there is limited representation of these ultra-high frequencies (particularly those greater than 60 kHz) throughout the ascending auditory system. Here, we show that neurons in the inferior colliculus (IC) of mice respond strongly to conspecific Vocalizations even though the energy in the Vocalizations is above the neurons' frequency tuning curves. This results in an over-representation of species-specific Vocalizations in the IC. In addition, neurons in mouse IC show selectivity among different Vocalizations. Many Vocalization-responsive neurons do not respond to the individual ultrasonic frequencies contained within the Vocalizations, but they do respond to combinations of ultrasonic tones if the difference between the tones is within the excitatory frequency tuning curve. The combinations of tones that elicit responses are the quadratic and/or cubic intermodulation distortion components that are generated by the cochlea. Thus, the intermodulation distortions in the cochlea may provide a previously overlooked mechanism for auditory processing of complex stimuli such as Vocalizations. The implication of these findings is that nonlinear interactions of frequencies, possibly caused by distortions in the system, may be used to enhance the sensitivity to behaviorally important stimuli.
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stimulus design for auditory neuroethology using state space modeling and the extended kalman smoother
Hearing Research, 2009Co-Authors: Lars Holmstrom, Sunghan Kim, James Mcnames, Christine V PortforsAbstract:A new method for designing Vocalization based stimuli for experiments in auditory neurophysiology is described. This analysis-synthesis technique leverages a state space statistical signal model and the extended Kalman smoother for tracking the frequency, amplitude, and phase information of harmonically related components in recorded Vocalizations. Using the same state space model, these parameters can then be used to synthesize the Vocalizations and random or deterministic variants of the Vocalizations. This method is shown to outperform short-time Fourier transform based frequency tracking methods in both noisy and noise-free synthetic test signals. It is further shown to accurately track recorded hummingbird, human, and bat Vocalizations while removing recording artifacts such as noise, echo, and digital aliasing in the synthesis phase.
