ABS 2023
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Variation in Widespread Northern Cardinal Songs Recorded Along Orthogonal 100-mile Transects
Sylvia L. Halkin. Central Connecticut State University Biology Dept., New Britain, CT, United States

Northern Cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis) song repertoires include both geographically widespread and local songs. Widespread songs may facilitate song-matching communication by dispersing individuals; song matching allows birds with song repertoires to direct their songs to conspecifics singing a shared song type. This system will be more stable if widespread songs persist over time. I compared song repertoires I recorded from 1981-1986 and 2021-2023 at the same Madison, Wisconsin study site. Ten song elements were shared between the two time periods. In 2021 I also recorded Northern Cardinal song along orthogonal 100-mile transects centered on the long-term Madison study site. Six of the ten song elements that appeared to persist over 40 years at the central site were also recorded at locations up to 50 miles away in 2021. Renditions of the same song element showed some variation over time and between locations, including shifts in frequency ranges and repetition rates. Patterns of variation in widespread song elements may provide insight into their sources of stability and change.