RESPONSE OF EUROPEAN ROBINS TO PLAYBACK OF SONG - NEIGHBOR RECOGNITION AND OVERLAPPING

Studies of neighbour/stranger song discrimination have mainly used passerine species with limited song repertoires. This study explored the extent of conspecific neighbour recognition in a species with a large and highly complex song repertoire, the European robin, Erithacus rubecula. Eight male robins were tested first for the ability to discriminate playbacks of neighbouring and non-neighbouring birds, and second for the effects of neighbour and non-neighbour playback at different distances from the neighbour-subject territory boundary. Robins, responded more strongly to song of a non-neighbour than to that of a neighbour from the neighbour-subject, boundary; however, response was equally strong to neighbour and non-neighbour when the speaker was moved to the opposite boundary. The amount of song given in response decreased, as distance of playback of neighbour and non-neighbour from the neighbour-subject boundary increased. Therefore, robins can both discriminate between the songs of neighbour and non-neighbour and estimate the distance and direction of sound. The robins overlapped their own song with the playback of non-neighbour song more than that of neighbour song although overlap decreased for both neighbour and non-neighbour playback with increasing distance. The advantages of neighbour/non-neighbour discrimination and song overlap as an indication of territorial status are discussed. © 1991.