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The organization of song in Müller’s Gibbon (Hylobates muelleri)

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Abstract

Like all other gibbon species, Müller’s gibbon (Hylobates muelleri)is monogamous, territorial, arboreal, and exhibits elaborate singing behavior. Although several previous studies have noted and presented descriptions of small parts of the singing behavior of this species, there have been no studies made on the vocal repertoire of both sexes during these songs or on the organization and overall structure of the entire song bouts. Observations, recordings, and a detailed analysis of the singing behavior of several adult pairs of Müller’s gibbons were made and are presented herein. The adult pairs were found to produce loud, complex, interactive, and sequentially organized duet bouts, which were dominated by the females. In contrast, the adult males produced long and elaborate solo bouts, which were neither sequentially nor interactively organized, although there was a distinct progressive elaboration of the notes and phrases produced throughout the bout. Some tentative implications of these findings on the constituent components of the bouts are also presented and discussed.

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Haimoff, E.H. The organization of song in Müller’s Gibbon (Hylobates muelleri). Int J Primatol 6, 173–192 (1985). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02693652

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02693652

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