Message-Id: <34BB92C7.41C67EA6@mmu.ac.uk>
Date: Tue, 13 Jan 1998 16:13:59 +0000
From: Bruce Edmonds <b.edmonds@mmu.ac.uk>
To: jom-emit-ann@mmu.ac.uk
Subject: Bird Song as a Possible Cultural Mechanism for Speciation by Mario Vaneechoutte
Bird Song as a Possible Cultural Mechanism for
Speciation
Mario Vaneechoutte
Abstract
Dialects of song exist in song birds. It can be
hypothesized that these dialects have no genetic
basis: there are no genes to predict which notes
should be sung and in what sequence; or how often
they should be repeated; or how long they should be,
etc. As such, bird songs can be considered purely
cultural, behavioural phenomena with no determining
roots in genetics. Combined with - equally culturally
determined - differential preferences of females for
male bird songs, one can hypothesize about cultural
mechanisms which may increase genetic
polymorphism in a population.
In other words, it can be hypothesized that
nongenetically encoded phenotypic behaviour may
cause actual isolation of subpopulations, leading to
increased genetic polymorphism in the population
and eventually to speciation in some taxa of sexually
reproducing organisms.
In summary, purely cultural phenomena may act as
an evolutionary drive, in nonhuman as well as human
organisms, by causing important gene frequency
alterations in a population and may eventually lead to
speciation (cultural speciation).
Keywords: speciation, culture, bird song, genetic
polymorphism, nongenetically encoded behaviour.
This is accessible at URL:
http://www.cpm.mmu.ac.uk/jom-emit/1997/vol1/vaneechoutte_m.html