Patrones de actividad vocal del Chimango durante el período de cría de los pichones

Luis Cueva; Paula M. Orozco-Valor; José H. Sarasola

doi:10.56178/eh.v41i2.1546

Articles Published 08 October 2026 https://doi.org/10.56178/eh.v41i2.1546

Vocal activity patterns in the Chimango Caracara during the nestling-rearing period

bioacoustics ontogeny passive monitoring raptors

Luis Cueva Centro para el Estudio y Conservación de las Aves Rapaces (CECARA), Avda. Luro 558, 6300 Santa Rosa, La Pampa, Argentina | Instituto de las Ciencias de la Tierra y Ambientales de La Pampa (INCITAP), Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Calle Rivadavia 236, 6300 Santa Rosa, La Pampa, Argentina

Paula M. Orozco-Valor Centro para el Estudio y Conservación de las Aves Rapaces (CECARA), Avda. Luro 558, 6300 Santa Rosa, La Pampa, Argentina | Instituto de las Ciencias de la Tierra y Ambientales de La Pampa (INCITAP), Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Calle Rivadavia 236, 6300 Santa Rosa, La Pampa, Argentina

José H. Sarasola Centro para el Estudio y Conservación de las Aves Rapaces (CECARA), Avda. Luro 558, 6300 Santa Rosa, La Pampa, Argentina | Instituto de las Ciencias de la Tierra y Ambientales de La Pampa (INCITAP), Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Calle Rivadavia 236, 6300 Santa Rosa, La Pampa, Argentina

Abstract

Vocal activity patterns in birds are shaped by both biotic and abiotic factors, resulting in seasonal variations that typically peak during the breeding season. During this period, vocalizations are driven by sexual selection and social interactions, such as territorial defense and parental provisioning. In this study, we evaluated: (1) the optimal confidence thresholds for identifying nestling and adult Chimango Caracara (Daptrius chimango) vocalizations using BirdNET to ensure high-probability detections; (2) the diel vocal activity patterns of both age groups during the rearing period; and (3) whether vocal activity shifts across different stages of nestling development. We deployed Autonomous Recording Units at 16 nests containing nestlings aged 1 to 30 days. BirdNET correctly identified nestling and adult vocalizations with 76% and 93% accuracy, respectively, confirming its reliability for age-group classification. Our results revealed a single daily peak in nestling vocal activity, whereas adults exhibited a bimodal pattern. Furthermore, younger nestlings showed increasing vocal activity throughout the day, while older nestlings displayed the opposite trend. Finally, adult vocal activity peaked during the mid-to-late stages of the nesting period. Our findings demonstrate that acoustic monitoring can effectively track developmental shifts and that Chimango Caracara vocal patterns are age-dependent during the rearing period.

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References

Amorós-Ausina A, Schuchmann KL, Marques MI, Pérez-Granados C (2024) Living Together, Singing Together: Revealing Similar Patterns of Vocal Activity in Two Tropical Songbirds Applying BirdNET. Sensors 24(17):5780. https://doi.org/10.3390/s24175780
Bota G, Manzano-Rubio R, Catal L & Julia G (2023) Hearing to the Unseen: AudioMoth and BirdNET as a Cheap and Easy Method for Monitoring Cryptic Bird Species. Ardeola 70(1):1-11. https://doi.org/10.3390/s23167176
Cadiou B, Monnat JY (1996) Parental attendance and squatting in the Kittiwake Rissa tridactyla during the rearing period. Bird Study 43(2):164–171. https://doi.org/10.1080/00063659609461009
Catchpole CK, Slater PJ (2003) Bird song: biological themes and variations. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge
Darras K, Bátary P, Fumas B, Grass I, Mulyani Y, Tscharntke T (2019) Autonomous sound recording outperforms human observation for sampling birds: a systematic map and user guide. Ecological Applications 29(6):e01954. https://doi.org/10.1002/eap.1954
Fairbairn AJ, Meyer ST (2025) BirdNET can be as good as experts for acoustic bird monitoring in a European city. PLoS ONE 20(1):1-12. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0330836
Ferguson-Lees J, Christie D (2001) Raptors of the world. Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston
Gallego-García D, Larrea M, Solaro C, Sarasola JH (2024) Biparental Care in a Generalist Raptor, the Chimango Caracara in Central Argentina. Journal of Raptor Research 58(2):176-184. https://doi.org/10.3356/JRR-23-16
Gil D, Llusia D (2020) The bird dawn chorus revisited. En: Brumm H (eds) Strategies in vertebrate acoustic communication. Springer International Publishing, Cham. Pp. 45-90
Hartig F (2024) DHARMa: Residual Diagnostics for Hierarchical (Multi-Level/Mixed) Regression Models. https://doi.org/10.32614/CRAN.package.DHARMa
Ibañéz-Álamo J, Arco J, Soler M (2012) Experimental evidence for a predation cost of begging using active nests and real chicks. Journal of Ornithology 153(3):801-807. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10336-011-0797-8
Kahl S, Wood CM, Eibl M, Klinck H (2021) Ecological Informatics BirdNET: A deep learning solution for avian diversity monitoring. Ecological Informatics 61(1):101236. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecoinf.2021.101236
Kelly KG, Wood CM, McGinn K, Kramer HA, Sawyer SC, Whitmore S, Reid D, Kahl S, Reiss A, Eiseman J, Berigan W, Keane JJ, Shaklee P, Gallagher L, Munton TE, Klinck H, Gutierrez RJ, Peery MZ, Yang KL (2023) Estimating population size for California spotted owls and barred owls across the Sierra Nevada ecosystem with bioacoustics. Ecological Indicators 154(1):110851. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolind.2023.110851
Kilner R, Johnstone RA (1997) Begging the question: are offspring solicitation behaviours signals of need? Trends in Ecology and Evolution 12(1):11-15. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0169-5347(96)10061-6
Klenova AV (2015) Chick Begging Calls Reflect Degree of Hunger in Three Auk Species (Charadriiformes: Alcidae). PLoS ONE 10(11):e0140151. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0140151
Knight EC, Hannah KC, Foley GJ, Scott CD, Brigham RM, Bayne E (2017) Recommendations for acoustic recognizer performance assessment with application to five common automated signal recognition programs. Avian Conservation and Ecology 12(2):14. https://doi.org/10.5751/ACE-01114-120214
Lenth R, Piaskowski J (2025) emmeans: Estimated Marginal Means, aka Least-Squares Means. R package version 1.11.1. https://doi.org/10.32614/CRAN.package.emmeans
Leonard ML, Horn AG (2001) Begging in the absence of parents by nestling tree swallows. Behavioral Ecology 12(4):501-505. https://doi.org/10.1093/beheco/12.4.501
Liu W, Kroodsma D (2007) Dawn and Daytime Singing Behavior of Chipping Sparrows (Spizelia passerina). The Auk 124(1):44-52. https://doi.org/10.1093/auk/124.1.44
Mah AN, Puan CL, Zakaria M (2023) Vocal Activity Patterns of the Changeable Hawk-Eagle (Nisaetus cirrhatus) in Peninsular Malaysia During Mid-breeding Season. Journal of Raptor Research 57(3):393-404. https://doi.org/10.3356/JRR-22-72
Marchenko AA, Boehme IR, Sarychev EI (2018) Ontogenesis of vocal behavior in diurnal birds of prey using the saker falcon (Falco cherrug) as an example and the goshawk (Accipiter gentilis). Biology Bulletin 45(1):712-722
Marin-Gómez OH, García-Arroyo M, Sánchez-Sarria CE, Sosa-López RJ, Diego SA, Ian MF (2020) Nightlife in the city: drivers of the occurrence and vocal activity of a tropical owl. Avian Research 11(9):1-14. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40657-020-00197-7
McGillycuddy M, Warton DI, Popovic G, Bolker BM (2025) Parsimoniously Fitting Large Multivariate Random Effects in glmmTMB. Journal of Statistical Software 112(1):1-19. https://doi.org/10.18637/jss.v112.i01
McLoughlin MP, Stewart R, McElligott AG (2019) Automated bioacoustics: methods in ecology and conservation and their potential for animal welfare monitoring. Journal of The Royal Society Interface 16(155):20190225. https://doi.org/10.1098/rsif.2019.0225
Mei J, Li L, Zhang W, Shi J, Zhao S, Yong F, Ge X (2026). Patterns of Vocal Activity of the Chinese Bamboo Partridge Using BirdNET Analyzer. Animals 16(2):303. https://doi.org/10.3390/ani16020303
Odom K, Mennill DJ (2010) A Quantitative Description of the Vocalizations and Vocal Activity of the Barred Owl. Condor 112(3):549-560. https://doi.org/10.1525/cond.2010.090163
Penteriani V, Gallardo M, Cazassus (2000). Diurnal Vocal Activity of Young Eagle Owls and Its Implications in Detecting Occupied Nests. Journal of Raptor Research 34(3):232-235
Pérez-Granados CP, Schuchmann KL (2020) Diel and Seasonal Variations of Vocal Behavior of the Neotropical White-Tipped Dove (Leptotila verreauxi). Diversity 12(10):402. https://doi.org/10.3390/d12100402
Pérez-Granados C (2025) Birdnet Confidence Scores Decrease with Bird Distance from the Recorder: Revisiting Pérez-Granados (2023). Ardeola 72(2):149-159. https://doi.org/10.13157/arla.72.2.2025.fo1
Pérez-Granados C, Schuchmann KL (2022) Automated signal recognition as a useful tool for monitoring little-studied species: The case of the Band-tailed Nighthawk. Ecological Informatics 72:101861. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecoinf.2022.101861
Pérez-Granados C, Schuchmann KL (2025). Diel and Annual Patterns of Vocal Activity of Three Neotropical Wetland Birds Revealed via BirdNET. Diversity 17(5):324. https://doi.org/10.3390/d17050324
Pérez-Granados C, Funosas D, Morant J, ..., Sebastián-González E (2026) Optimization of passive acoustic bird surveys: a global assessment of BirdNET settings. Ibis 168(2):785-798. https://doi.org/10.1111/ibi.70013
Singer D, Kamp J, Hondong H, Schuldt A, Hagge J (2026) Diel and seasonal vocal activity patterns revealed by passive acoustic monitoring suggest expert recommendations for breeding bird surveys need adjustment. Journal of Ornithology 167(1):165-180. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10336-025-02307-y
Solaro C, Sarasola JH (2015) Nest-spacing, not human presence, influences the breeding of Chimango Caracaras (Milvago chimango) in a peri-urban reserve. Emu 115(1):72-75
Solaro C, Sarasola JH (2023) Breeding performance is explained for coloniality and phenology but not for urbanization in a generalist raptor bird. Urban Ecosystems 26(3):743-753. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11252-022-01319-3
Solaro C (2024) Vocal Repertoire of Chimango Caracaras in Rural and Urban Habitats. Journal of Raptor Research 58(2):221-228. https://doi.org/10.3356/JRR-23-25
Sonerud GA, Steen R, Løw LM, Røed LT, Skar K, Selås V, Slagsvold T (2014) Evolution of parental roles in raptors: prey type determines role asymmetry in the Eurasian kestrel. Animal Behaviour 96:31-38. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.anbehav.2014.07.011
Thompson MC, Ducey MJ, Rowe RJ (2025) A post-processing framework for assessing BirdNET identification accuracy and community composition. Ibis 167(2):530-542. https://doi.org/10.1111/ibi.13357

How to cite

Luis Cueva, Paula M. Orozco-Valor, José H. Sarasola (2026). Vocal activity patterns in the Chimango Caracara during the nestling-rearing period. El Hornero, Vol. 41 No. 2 (2026). https://doi.org/10.56178/eh.v41i2.1546

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License: CC BY-NC 4.0

[1] Amorós-Ausina A, Schuchmann KL, Marques MI, Pérez-Granados C (2024) Living Together, Singing Together: Revealing Similar Patterns of Vocal Activity in Two Tropical Songbirds Applying BirdNET. Sensors 24(17):5780. https://doi.org/10.3390/s24175780

[2] Bota G, Manzano-Rubio R, Catal L & Julia G (2023) Hearing to the Unseen: AudioMoth and BirdNET as a Cheap and Easy Method for Monitoring Cryptic Bird Species. Ardeola 70(1):1-11. https://doi.org/10.3390/s23167176

[3] Cadiou B, Monnat JY (1996) Parental attendance and squatting in the Kittiwake Rissa tridactyla during the rearing period. Bird Study 43(2):164–171. https://doi.org/10.1080/00063659609461009

[4] Catchpole CK, Slater PJ (2003) Bird song: biological themes and variations. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge

[5] Darras K, Bátary P, Fumas B, Grass I, Mulyani Y, Tscharntke T (2019) Autonomous sound recording outperforms human observation for sampling birds: a systematic map and user guide. Ecological Applications 29(6):e01954. https://doi.org/10.1002/eap.1954

[6] Fairbairn AJ, Meyer ST (2025) BirdNET can be as good as experts for acoustic bird monitoring in a European city. PLoS ONE 20(1):1-12. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0330836

[7] Ferguson-Lees J, Christie D (2001) Raptors of the world. Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston

[8] Gallego-García D, Larrea M, Solaro C, Sarasola JH (2024) Biparental Care in a Generalist Raptor, the Chimango Caracara in Central Argentina. Journal of Raptor Research 58(2):176-184. https://doi.org/10.3356/JRR-23-16

[9] Gil D, Llusia D (2020) The bird dawn chorus revisited. En: Brumm H (eds) Strategies in vertebrate acoustic communication. Springer International Publishing, Cham. Pp. 45-90

[10] Hartig F (2024) DHARMa: Residual Diagnostics for Hierarchical (Multi-Level/Mixed) Regression Models. https://doi.org/10.32614/CRAN.package.DHARMa

[11] Ibañéz-Álamo J, Arco J, Soler M (2012) Experimental evidence for a predation cost of begging using active nests and real chicks. Journal of Ornithology 153(3):801-807. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10336-011-0797-8

[12] Kahl S, Wood CM, Eibl M, Klinck H (2021) Ecological Informatics BirdNET: A deep learning solution for avian diversity monitoring. Ecological Informatics 61(1):101236. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecoinf.2021.101236

[13] Kelly KG, Wood CM, McGinn K, Kramer HA, Sawyer SC, Whitmore S, Reid D, Kahl S, Reiss A, Eiseman J, Berigan W, Keane JJ, Shaklee P, Gallagher L, Munton TE, Klinck H, Gutierrez RJ, Peery MZ, Yang KL (2023) Estimating population size for California spotted owls and barred owls across the Sierra Nevada ecosystem with bioacoustics. Ecological Indicators 154(1):110851. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolind.2023.110851

[14] Kilner R, Johnstone RA (1997) Begging the question: are offspring solicitation behaviours signals of need? Trends in Ecology and Evolution 12(1):11-15. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0169-5347(96)10061-6

[15] Klenova AV (2015) Chick Begging Calls Reflect Degree of Hunger in Three Auk Species (Charadriiformes: Alcidae). PLoS ONE 10(11):e0140151. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0140151

[16] Knight EC, Hannah KC, Foley GJ, Scott CD, Brigham RM, Bayne E (2017) Recommendations for acoustic recognizer performance assessment with application to five common automated signal recognition programs. Avian Conservation and Ecology 12(2):14. https://doi.org/10.5751/ACE-01114-120214

[17] Lenth R, Piaskowski J (2025) emmeans: Estimated Marginal Means, aka Least-Squares Means. R package version 1.11.1. https://doi.org/10.32614/CRAN.package.emmeans

[18] Leonard ML, Horn AG (2001) Begging in the absence of parents by nestling tree swallows. Behavioral Ecology 12(4):501-505. https://doi.org/10.1093/beheco/12.4.501

[19] Liu W, Kroodsma D (2007) Dawn and Daytime Singing Behavior of Chipping Sparrows (Spizelia passerina). The Auk 124(1):44-52. https://doi.org/10.1093/auk/124.1.44

[20] Mah AN, Puan CL, Zakaria M (2023) Vocal Activity Patterns of the Changeable Hawk-Eagle (Nisaetus cirrhatus) in Peninsular Malaysia During Mid-breeding Season. Journal of Raptor Research 57(3):393-404. https://doi.org/10.3356/JRR-22-72

[21] Marchenko AA, Boehme IR, Sarychev EI (2018) Ontogenesis of vocal behavior in diurnal birds of prey using the saker falcon (Falco cherrug) as an example and the goshawk (Accipiter gentilis). Biology Bulletin 45(1):712-722

[22] Marin-Gómez OH, García-Arroyo M, Sánchez-Sarria CE, Sosa-López RJ, Diego SA, Ian MF (2020) Nightlife in the city: drivers of the occurrence and vocal activity of a tropical owl. Avian Research 11(9):1-14. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40657-020-00197-7

[23] McGillycuddy M, Warton DI, Popovic G, Bolker BM (2025) Parsimoniously Fitting Large Multivariate Random Effects in glmmTMB. Journal of Statistical Software 112(1):1-19. https://doi.org/10.18637/jss.v112.i01

[24] McLoughlin MP, Stewart R, McElligott AG (2019) Automated bioacoustics: methods in ecology and conservation and their potential for animal welfare monitoring. Journal of The Royal Society Interface 16(155):20190225. https://doi.org/10.1098/rsif.2019.0225

[25] Mei J, Li L, Zhang W, Shi J, Zhao S, Yong F, Ge X (2026). Patterns of Vocal Activity of the Chinese Bamboo Partridge Using BirdNET Analyzer. Animals 16(2):303. https://doi.org/10.3390/ani16020303

[26] Odom K, Mennill DJ (2010) A Quantitative Description of the Vocalizations and Vocal Activity of the Barred Owl. Condor 112(3):549-560. https://doi.org/10.1525/cond.2010.090163

[27] Penteriani V, Gallardo M, Cazassus (2000). Diurnal Vocal Activity of Young Eagle Owls and Its Implications in Detecting Occupied Nests. Journal of Raptor Research 34(3):232-235

[28] Pérez-Granados CP, Schuchmann KL (2020) Diel and Seasonal Variations of Vocal Behavior of the Neotropical White-Tipped Dove (Leptotila verreauxi). Diversity 12(10):402. https://doi.org/10.3390/d12100402

[29] Pérez-Granados C (2025) Birdnet Confidence Scores Decrease with Bird Distance from the Recorder: Revisiting Pérez-Granados (2023). Ardeola 72(2):149-159. https://doi.org/10.13157/arla.72.2.2025.fo1

[30] Pérez-Granados C, Schuchmann KL (2022) Automated signal recognition as a useful tool for monitoring little-studied species: The case of the Band-tailed Nighthawk. Ecological Informatics 72:101861. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecoinf.2022.101861

[31] Pérez-Granados C, Schuchmann KL (2025). Diel and Annual Patterns of Vocal Activity of Three Neotropical Wetland Birds Revealed via BirdNET. Diversity 17(5):324. https://doi.org/10.3390/d17050324

[32] Pérez-Granados C, Funosas D, Morant J, ..., Sebastián-González E (2026) Optimization of passive acoustic bird surveys: a global assessment of BirdNET settings. Ibis 168(2):785-798. https://doi.org/10.1111/ibi.70013

[33] Singer D, Kamp J, Hondong H, Schuldt A, Hagge J (2026) Diel and seasonal vocal activity patterns revealed by passive acoustic monitoring suggest expert recommendations for breeding bird surveys need adjustment. Journal of Ornithology 167(1):165-180. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10336-025-02307-y

[34] Solaro C, Sarasola JH (2015) Nest-spacing, not human presence, influences the breeding of Chimango Caracaras (Milvago chimango) in a peri-urban reserve. Emu 115(1):72-75

[35] Solaro C, Sarasola JH (2023) Breeding performance is explained for coloniality and phenology but not for urbanization in a generalist raptor bird. Urban Ecosystems 26(3):743-753. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11252-022-01319-3

[36] Solaro C (2024) Vocal Repertoire of Chimango Caracaras in Rural and Urban Habitats. Journal of Raptor Research 58(2):221-228. https://doi.org/10.3356/JRR-23-25

[37] Sonerud GA, Steen R, Løw LM, Røed LT, Skar K, Selås V, Slagsvold T (2014) Evolution of parental roles in raptors: prey type determines role asymmetry in the Eurasian kestrel. Animal Behaviour 96:31-38. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.anbehav.2014.07.011

[38] Thompson MC, Ducey MJ, Rowe RJ (2025) A post-processing framework for assessing BirdNET identification accuracy and community composition. Ibis 167(2):530-542. https://doi.org/10.1111/ibi.13357