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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jun 15, 2026

Biomarkers in an Animal Model for Revealing Neural, Hematologic, and Behavioral Correlates of PTSD

Biomarkers in an Animal Model for Revealing Neural, Hematologic, and Behavioral Correlates of PTSD

Published on: October 10, 2012

Alarm calls elicit predator-specific physiological responses.

¹Department of Comparative Human Development and Committee on Evolutionary Biology, The University of Chicago, 5730 South Woodlawn Avenue, Chicago, IL 60637, USA. jmateo@uchicago.edu

Biology Letters

|March 19, 2010

Summary

Juvenile ground squirrels show distinct physiological responses to different alarm calls. Trill calls trigger a significant cortisol increase, aiding in predator evasion, while whistles enhance attention.

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Jun 15, 2026

Biomarkers in an Animal Model for Revealing Neural, Hematologic, and Behavioral Correlates of PTSD

Biomarkers in an Animal Model for Revealing Neural, Hematologic, and Behavioral Correlates of PTSD

Published on: October 10, 2012

Area of Science:

Animal behavior
Neuroendocrinology
Ecology

Background:

Glucocorticoids are crucial for regulating glucose metabolism and stress responses.
Juvenile Belding's ground squirrels learn predator alarm calls (whistles for aerial, trills for terrestrial) after emerging from burrows.
Alarm calls can induce physiological arousal, potentially aiding in learning call-response associations.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate whether young ground squirrels exhibit differential cortisol responses to distinct alarm calls.
To compare physiological reactions to whistle, trill, squeal, and silent control vocalizations.

Main Methods:

Playback experiments using vocalizations from Urocitellus beldingi (whistles, trills, squeals, and silent controls).
Measurement of cortisol levels in juvenile squirrels in response to auditory stimuli.
Baseline cortisol levels were established using responses to silent controls.

Main Results:

Trill calls elicited significantly higher cortisol responses compared to baseline (silent control).
Whistle calls did not elicit a significant cortisol response but are known to cause bradycardia (slowed heart rate).
The cortisol response to trills is hypothesized to support glucose availability for prolonged vigilance and escape from terrestrial predators.

Conclusions:

This study demonstrates a novel dissociation in physiological responses to two types of alarm calls in juvenile ground squirrels.
Cortisol elevation in response to trills is adaptive for terrestrial predator threats, while whistles may enhance attention for aerial threats.
These findings highlight the sophisticated, context-dependent physiological adaptations in young animals to predator cues.