ArticlePloS one2010
Sexual dimorphism of the zebra finch syrinx indicates adaptation for high fundamental frequencies in males.
Article in PloS one, 2010. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 19 papers.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
19 citing papers in PubMed, 54 citations in OpenAlex.
- Respiratory contributions to birdsong-evolutionary considerations and open questions.Philosophical transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series B, Biological sciences · 2025Review
- Evolution of the syrinx of Apodiformes, including the vocal-learning Trochilidae (Aves: Strisores).Zoological journal of the Linnean Society · 2024Article
- Different frequency control mechanisms and the exploitation of frequency space in passerines.Ecology and evolution · 2021Article
- Article
- Syringeal vocal folds do not have a voice in zebra finch vocal development.Scientific reports · 2021Article
- Neural coding of sound envelope structure in songbirds.Journal of comparative physiology. A, Neuroethology, sensory, neural, and behavioral physiology · 2018Article
- From electromyographic activity to frequency modulation in zebra finch song.Journal of comparative physiology. A, Neuroethology, sensory, neural, and behavioral physiology · 2018Article
- Contributions of rapid neuromuscular transmission to the fine control of acoustic parameters of birdsong.Journal of neurophysiology · 2017Article
- Morphological basis for the evolution of acoustic diversity in oscine songbirds.Proceedings. Biological sciences · 2014Article
- Motor control of sound frequency in birdsong involves the interaction between air sac pressure and labial tension.Physical review. E, Statistical, nonlinear, and soft matter physics · 2014Article
- The respiratory-vocal system of songbirds: anatomy, physiology, and neural control.Progress in brain research · 2014Review
- A mechanism for frequency modulation in songbirds shared with humans.The Journal of neuroscience : the official journal of the Society for Neuroscience · 2013Article
- Integrative physiology of fundamental frequency control in birds.Journal of physiology, Paris · 2013Review
- The songbird syrinx morphome: a three-dimensional, high-resolution, interactive morphological map of the zebra finch vocal organ.BMC biology · 2013Article
- The acoustic effect of vocal tract adjustments in zebra finches.Journal of comparative physiology. A, Neuroethology, sensory, neural, and behavioral physiology · 2013Article
- Article
- Sexual dimorphism and bilateral asymmetry of syrinx and vocal tract in the European starling (Sturnus vulgaris).Journal of morphology · 2011Article
- Subglottal pressure and fundamental frequency control in contact calls of juvenile Alligator mississippiensis.The Journal of experimental biology · 2011Article
- Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
3 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundIn many songbirds the larger vocal repertoire of males is associated with sexual dimorphism of the vocal control centers and muscles of the vocal organ, the syrinx. However, it is largely unknown how these differences are translated into different acoustic behavior. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL
findingsHere we show that the sound generating structures of the syrinx, the labia and the associated cartilaginous framework, also display sexual dimorphism. One of the bronchial half rings that position and tense the labia is larger in males, and the size and shape of the labia differ between males and females. The functional consequences of these differences were explored by denervating syringeal muscles. After denervation, both sexes produced equally low fundamental frequencies, but the driving pressure generally increased and was higher in males. Denervation strongly affected the relationship between driving pressure and fundamental frequency. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: The syringeal modifications in the male syrinx, in concert with dimorphisms in neural control and muscle mass, are most likely the foundation for the potential to generate an enhanced frequency range. Sexually dimorphic vocal behavior therefore arises from finely tuned modifications at every level of the motor cascade. This sexual dimorphism in frequency control illustrates a significant evolutionary step towards increased vocal complexity in birds.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.