Study Site: Oka Crane Breeding Centre of Oka Biosphere State Nature Reserve (Ryazan region, Russia), Rare Bird Reintroduction Station of Khingansky State Nature Reserve (Amur region, Russia). Zoos in Moscow, St. Petersburg, Novosibirsk, Ivanovo, Krasnodar, “Dodo” (Russia).
Dates: Since 2003.
Participants: Klenova Anna, Volodin Ilya, Volodina Elena, Kasirova Tatjana.
Collaborators: Kaschentseva Tatjana and Postelnykh Kirill (Oka Crane Breeding Centre of Oka Biosphere State Nature Reserve), Kholodova Marina (Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution RAS), Beme Irina (Lomonosov Moscow State University).
Popular papers: <Science & Life>, <Priroda>.

In mammals, recognition between sexes and among individuals is based mainly on olfaction, whereas birds use for this purpose visual and acoustic channels, although recently, the role of olfaction has been also revealed. In birds, sex dimorphism may be expressed in body size or coloration. However, when natural selection imposes strict condstraints on body size and coloration of males and females, the pressure of natural selection can be targeted to increase of sexual dimorphism in vocalization. Therefore, in the monomorphic bird species, the acoustical cues to sex or to individual identity can be prevalent over other signals.

The project has a few research focuses:

• To describe vocal ontogenesis of red-crowned crane chicks and to follow the raising the individual and sex-related features during the first year of life.
• To describe individual and sexual differences and to analyse their ratios in duets of red-crowned cranes.
• To analyse stability of pair-specific features in duets of red-crowned cranes during a few years.
• To estimate a potential for the practical use of non-invasive acoustic sex recognition and monitoring of individual birds in nature.
• To estimate the structure and occurrence of biphonic calls in Siberian cranes Grus leucogeranus.

Sounds in the Gallery.

Papers:

• Klenova A.V., Volodin I.A., Volodina E.V., Postelnykh K.A. Voice breaking in adolescent red-crowned cranes Grus japonensis // Behaviour, 2010, v. 147, N 4, p. 505-524. 171.pdf
• Klenova A.V., Volodin I.A., Volodina E.V. The variation in reliability of individual vocal signature throughout ontogenesis in the red-crowned crane Grus japonensis // Acta Ethologica, 2009, v. 12, N 1, p. 29-36. 167.pdf
• Klenova A.V., Volodin I.A., Volodina E.V. Examination of pair-duet stability to promote long-term monitoring of the endangered red-crowned crane (Grus japonensis) // Journal of Ethology, 2009, v. 27, N 3, p. 401-406. 166.pdf

• Klenova A.V., Wessling B., Volodina E.V Volodin I.A. Between-population differences in duets of the red-crowned crane // Cranes of Eurasia (biology, distribution, migrations), Issue 3. Proceedings of the International Conference “Cranes of Palearctic: biology and conservation”. Moscow, 2008, p. 82-95. 162.pdf
• Klenova A.V., Volodin I.A., Volodina E.V., Kashentseva T.A. The relations between individual, sexual, and kin-related differences in chirp calls of the red-crowned crane chick (Grus japonensis) // Zoologicheskii Zhurnal, 2008, v. 87, N 4, p. 458-465. (available in Russian). 155.pdf
• Klenova A.V., Volodin I.A., Volodina E.V. Duet structure provides information about pair identity in the red-crowned crane (Grus japonensis) // Journal of Ethology, 2008, v. 26, N 3, p. 317-325. 154.pdf
• Klenova A.V. Vocal indicators of individuality and sex in monomorphic birds. Ph.D. Thesis Abstract, Moscow, 2008, 24 p. (available in Russian). .pdf
• Klenova A.V., Volodin I.A., Volodina E.V. The vocal development in the Red-crowned Crane Grus japonensis // Ornithological Science, 2007, v. 6, N 2, p. 107-119. 152.pdf
• Kasirova T.A., Volodin I.A., Volodina E.V., Kashentseva T.A., Beme I.R. The structure and occurrence of biphonic calls in chicks of the Siberian crane (Grus leucogeranus) // Ornithologia, 2005, v. 32, p. 97-104. (available in Russian). 143.pdf
• Klenova A.V., Volodin I.A., Volodina E.V., Kashentseva T.A. Sexual differences in whistling calls under discomfort in Red-crowned crane chicks (Grus japonensis) // Ornithologia, 2005, v. 32, p. 105-111. (available in Russian). 142.pdf
• Klenova A.V., Volodin I.A., Volodina E.V., Kholodova M.V., Nesterenko O.N.. Sexual and individual differences in calls of the Red-crowned crane (Grus japonensis) chicks. // “Scientific researches in Zoos”, Iss. 17, Moscow, 2004, p. 103-118. (available in Russian). 135.pdf