White-throated Sparrow

Song

Old Sam Peabody
Oh Sweet Canada

What is known about white-throated sparrow song?

Pure whistled notes arranged in pattern, typically with 1 major pitch change after first or second note (Borror and Gunn 1965)
Most individuals sing 1 pattern but song differs among individuals (Borror and Gunn 1965)
Sing in bouts
Countersinging with alternating song (Wasserman 1977a)
No dialects (Lemon and Harris 1974)
Old Sweet Canada song no long common (Borror and Gunn 1965)
Identify neighbors and their positions (Brooks & Falls 1975a,b)
Song peaks just before females arrive on breeding ground (Wasserman 1980)

How and when is song acquired?

Sensitive period 30-100 d
Which birds act as tutors is unknown
Isolated nestlings produce abnormal song
Exposure to tape recorded song produced fewer abnormal songs and some normal song (BNA)

How can we facilitate song learning?

References:

Borror, D. J. and Gunn, W. W. H. 1965. Variation in White-throated Sparrow songs. Auk 82:26-47.

Brooks, R. J. & Falls, J. B. 1975a. Individual recognition by song in white-throated sparrows. I. Can. J. Zool., 53, 879-88.

Brooks, R. J. & Falls, J. B. 1975b. Individual recognition by song in white-throated sparrows. III. Can. J. Zool., 53, 1749-61.

Falls, J. B. & Brooks, R. J. 1975. Individual recognition by song in white-throated sparrows. II. Can. J. Zool., 53, 1412-20.

Lemon, R. E. and Harris, M. 1974. The question of dialects in the songs of the White-throated Sparrow. Canadian Journal of Zoology 52:83-98.

Wasserman, F. E. 1977a. Intraspecific accoustical interference in the White-throated Sparrow (Zonotrichia albicollis). Animal Behaviour 25:949-952.