Birds and reptiles have long fascinated investigators studying hearing and the auditory system. The highly evolved auditory inner ear of birds and reptiles shares many characteristics with the ear of mammals. Thus, the two groups are essential in understanding the form and function of the vertebrate and mammalian auditory systems. Comparative Hearing: Birds and Reptiles covers the broad range of our knowledge of hearing and acoustic communication in both groups of vertebrates. This volume addresses the many similarities in their auditory systems, as well as the known significant...

A major goal of hearing research is to explain how the human auditory system normally functions and to help identify the causes of and treatments for hearing impairment. Experimental approaches to this research make use of animal models that are developed, evaluated and validated to determine what can be generalized from one species to another. By investigating the structures, physiological functions and hearing capabilities of various species, comparative hearing research establishes the biological and evolutionary context for such models. This volume brings together our current...

The Springer Handbook of Auditory Research presents a series of com- prehensive and synthetic reviews of the fundamental topics in modern auditory research. The volumes are aimed at all individuals with interests in hearing research including advanced graduate students, post-doctoral researchers, and clinical investigators. The volumes are intended to intro- duce new investigators to important aspects of hearing science and to help established investigators to better understand the fundamental theories and data in fields of hearing that they may not normally follow closely. Each volume is...

Cetaceans inhabit oceans, seas and even some rivers throughout the world. Hearing and sound production are thought to serve crucial functions in the behavior, natural history or life cycle of all of these animals. Although difficulties in studying large aquatic animals have limited experimental auditory research on many species, knowledge about the acoustic behavior of these animals has been increasing dramatically. In this volume, experts in different areas of the field provide an overview of the bioacoustics of whales and dolphins as well as a thorough introduction to the subject for...

This volume is a compilation of the papers presented at a meeting that took place in April 1980 at the Mote Marine Laboratory, Sarasota, Florida. The meeting and this volume are outgrowths of two earlier international meetings on marine bio-acoustics that occurred in 1963 and 1966 (Tavolga 1964, 1967). The first meeting took place at the Lerner Marine Laboratory of the American Museum of Natural History, while the second meeting was at the American Museum itself, and was under the sponsorship of the Department of Animal Behavior. It is apparent that these two volumes have had immense impact...

Twenty five years ago, Bill Stebbins presented the principles of animal psychophysics in an edited volume (Stebbins, 1970) describing an array of modem, creative methodologies for investigating the range of sensory systems in a variety of vertebrate species. These principles included precise stimulus control, a well defined behavioral response, and a rigorous behavioral procedure appropriate to the organism under study. As a generation of comparative sensory scientists applied these principles, our knowledge of sensory and perceptual function in a wide range of animal species has grown...