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Behavioral and adrenocortical responses to mate separation and reunion in the zebra finch
- Source :
- Hormones and Behavior. 43:108-114
- Publication Year :
- 2003
- Publisher :
- Elsevier BV, 2003.
-
Abstract
- The adaptive value of social affiliation has been well established. It is unclear, however, what endogenous mechanisms may mediate affiliative behavior. The Australian zebra finch ( Taeniopygia guttata ) breeds colonially and adults maintain lifelong pair bonds that may be disrupted in the wild due to high mortality rates. Many of its natural, social behaviors are maintained in laboratory conditions, making this species well suited for studying the mechanisms of affiliation. This study examines the behavioral and neuroendocrine responses to pair mate separation and reunion in zebra finches. We measured plasma corticosterone (CORT) and behavioral changes following separation from a pair bonded mate, and again upon reintroducing the mate or an opposite-sex cagemate. Plasma CORT concentrations were: (1) elevated during pair mate separation, even in the presence of other same-sex individuals, and (2) reduced to baseline upon reunion with the pair mate but not upon re-pairing with a new opposite-sex partner. These findings show that zebra finches exhibit hormonal responses to separation and reunion specifically with a bonded pair mate and not with other familiar conspecifics. In addition, alterations in behavior during separation and reunion are consistent with monogamous pair bond maintenance. This study presents evidence for adrenocortical involvement in avian pair bonding, and for hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal activation in response to an ecologically relevant social stressor.
- Subjects :
- Male
Adaptive value
Zoology
Social affiliation
Developmental psychology
Songbirds
Behavioral Neuroscience
Endocrinology
Animals
Zebra finch
Pair Bond
Behavior, Animal
biology
Endocrine and Autonomic Systems
High mortality
biology.organism_classification
Pair bond
Social relation
Acoustic Stimulation
Adrenal Cortex
Female
Vocalization, Animal
Corticosterone
Psychology
Photic Stimulation
Stress, Psychological
Taeniopygia
Social behavior
Subjects
Details
- ISSN :
- 0018506X
- Volume :
- 43
- Database :
- OpenAIRE
- Journal :
- Hormones and Behavior
- Accession number :
- edsair.doi.dedup.....545f3b121299101b2fb611bb77827693