Acoustic interaction in animal groups: signaling in noisy and social contexts

It has long been known that individuals of many species vocally communicate with one another in noisy environments and in rich contexts of social interaction. It has recently become clear that researchers interested in understanding acoustic communication in animal groups must study vocal signaling in these noisy and socially complex settings. Furthermore, recent methodological advances have made it increasingly clear that the authors can tackle these more complex questions effectively. The articles in this Special Issue stem from a Symposium held at the June 2006 meeting of the Acoustical Society of America, and illustrate some of the taxonomic and methodological diversity in studies aimed at understanding how acoustic communication functions in social grouping. This introduction to the Special Issue provides a brief overview of the articles and key ideas in this field of inquiry, and suggests some future directions to take the field to help us understand how social pressures in animal groups may influence, and be influenced by, acoustic signals.