Caracterización acústica del repertorio vocal de la Vicugna vicugna (Artiodactyla: Camelidae) en cautiverio: descripción y análisis espectrográfico

María Laura Chaves; Alejandra Hurtado; Flavia Patricia Rodriguez

doi:10.30550/j.azl/2391

Authors

María Laura Chaves Cátedra de Comportamiento Animal, Facultad de Ciencias Naturales e Instituto Miguel Lillo, Universidad Nacional de Tucumán (UNT) https://orcid.org/0009-0009-5019-9242
Alejandra Hurtado Cátedra de Comportamiento Animal, Facultad de Ciencias Naturales e Instituto Miguel Lillo, Universidad Nacional de Tucumán (UNT)
Flavia Patricia Rodriguez Cátedra de Comportamiento Animal, Facultad de Ciencias Naturales e Instituto Miguel Lillo, Universidad Nacional de Tucumán (UNT)

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.30550/j.azl/2391

Keywords:

Camelids, Communication, Spectrogram, Formants

Abstract

The vicuña (Vicugna vicugna), the smallest South American camelid, lives in family groups or bachelor herds. While its biology is well-documented, its acoustic communication remained unexplored. This study presents the first acoustic ethogram of the species, aiming to describe its vocal repertoire in captivity through spectrographic analysis.

Conducted at INTA Abra Pampa (Jujuy), the research identified ten distinct vocalizations categorized as tonal (bleat, humming, screams, and moans), noisy (bellow and growls), or mixed (whinny). Growl 1 exhibited chaotic non-linear phenomena associated with intense affective states and social hierarchy, while the whinny’s characteristics suggest adaptation for long-distance transmission.

A key finding was the validation of the source-filter model; formant analysis of moans and bellows estimated a theoretical vocal tract length (VTL) of 17.8 cm, closely matching direct cranial measurements of 16.72 cm. Furthermore, certain vocalizations were found to encode information about body size, and the fundamental frequency ($F_0$) proved highly effective in discriminating between vocal types. These results establish a foundation for future research on communicative functions and behavior, providing essential tools for the management of the species.

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