Content area

Abstract

Vocal learners, including humans and songbirds, acquire their complex vocalizations by accurately memorizing and imitating the vocal patterns of other individuals. In songbirds, the caudomedial nidopallium (NCM), considered the secondary auditory region, has been suggested to play a critical role in memorizing and recognizing the songs of tutors. However, the mechanisms by which NCM neurons encode the acoustic information of tutor song are not yet fully understood. Here, we investigate the neural representation of tutor song information in NCM neurons by examining their sensitivity to spectral changes in song structure, using electrophysiological recordings in anesthetized male zebra finches. We manipulated the acoustic structures of both tutor songs and unfamiliar conspecific songs by shifting the fundamental frequency (FF) of harmonic syllables by various frequency steps and recorded neural responses to those FF-shifted and original songs. Our results demonstrate that NCM neurons are highly sensitive to FF shifts in tutor song but much less in unfamiliar conspecific song, providing novel evidence for neural encoding of tutor song information in NCM neurons. Moreover, we find that the effects of FF shifts on neural responses depend on the direction of FF shifts. These findings suggest that NCM neurons encode detailed information of tutor song, which can serve as a tutor song template required for song learning.

Details

Taxonomic term
Title
Neural sensitivity to frequency changes in song structure in a high-order auditory area reflects tutor song memory in adult songbirds
Publication title
Volume
230
Issue
1
Pages
11
Publication year
2025
Publication date
Jan 2025
Publisher
Springer Nature B.V.
Place of publication
Heidelberg
Country of publication
Netherlands
ISSN
1863-2653
e-ISSN
0340-2061
Source type
Scholarly Journal
Language of publication
English
Document type
Journal Article
Publication history
 
 
Online publication date
2024-12-18
Milestone dates
2024-12-04 (Registration); 2024-04-11 (Received); 2024-10-14 (Accepted)
Publication history
 
 
   First posting date
18 Dec 2024
ProQuest document ID
3146696365
Document URL
https://www.proquest.com/scholarly-journals/neural-sensitivity-frequency-changes-song/docview/3146696365/se-2?accountid=208611
Copyright
Copyright Springer Nature B.V. Jan 2025
Last updated
2025-01-28
Database
ProQuest One Academic