Data and code from: Evolution and drivers of long-distance vocal communication in mammals
Data files
Mar 09, 2026 version files 157.16 KB
Abstract
Long-distance communication is important for life history processes in many species. A long-standing debate exists about the type of evolutionary history and environmental drivers that have shaped the propagation of animal sounds. We compare the maximal propagation distance of calls for 103 mammalian species using comparative analysis. While maximal propagation distances in aquatic mammals are best explained by body mass, in terrestrial mammals, the effects of home range, with call type, habitat, and sociality, best explain maximal propagation distances. The difference between the effects of body mass and home range on maximal propagation distances of mammal sound signals suggests that sound propagation strongly depends on environmental pressures and evolutionary mechanisms, within physical laws. Evidence is provided that the acoustic adaptation hypothesis may be more associated with home range than body mass in terrestrial mammals, while predation may be an important component that facilitates this adaptation for mammals in different environments. Understanding these evolutionary trait drivers provides one key step to answer whether vocal species could be affected by environmental and anthropogenic acoustic pressures, and whether they can evolve in response to those pressures.
Contents of Data-and-code_Evolution_and_drivers_of_long-distance_vocal_communication.zip:
- csv Data => folder containing the datasets which were used to analyse: a) Excel Data File (1. MS_all-mammals_analysis.csv) => all mammals in the literature that had values for the maximal propagation distance of their vocal sounds (n = 103),
b) Excel Data File (2. MS_terrestrial-mammals_analysis.csv) => a subset containing only terrestrial mammals (n = 71), and
c) Excel Data File (3. MS_aquatic-mammals_analysis.csv) => a subset containing only aquatic mammals (n = 32). - Phylogenetic Tree File (1. MS_Median_NewickTree-PGLS_Propagation-Distance.txt) => folder containing the phylogenetic tree file used in the six PGLS analyses of the manuscript, in Newick String Form within a .txt file.
- quarto code => folder containing the quarto code used to conduct six PGLS analyses of the manuscript, to be run in Rstudio.
a) R studio Quarto File (2024_MS-Analysis1-mammals_bm-only.qmd) => Code for Analysis 1 - Mammals, BM Only, and phylogenetic signal bar chart (Figure 2b)
b) R studio Quarto File (2024_MS-Analysis1-mammals_hr-only.qmd) => Code for Analysis 1 - Mammals, HR Only, and comparison between the best "all mammal, body mass only" model and the best "all mammal, home range only" model
c) R studio Quarto File (2024_MS-Analysis2-ter-mam_bm-only.qmd) => Code for Analysis 2 - Terrestrial Mammals, BM Only
d) R studio Quarto File (2024_MS-Analysis2-ter-mam_hr-only.qmd) => Code for Analysis 2 - Terrestrial Mammals, HR Only, and comparison between the best "terrestrial mammal, body mass only" model and the best "terrestrial mammal, home range only" model
e) R studio Quarto File (2024_MS-Analysis3-aqua-mam_bm-only.qmd) => Code for Analysis 3 - Aquatic Mammals, BM Only
f) R studio Quarto File (2024_MS-Analysis3-aqua-mam_hr-only.qmd) => Code for Analysis 3 - Aquatic Mammals, HR Only, and comparison between the best "aquatic mammal, body mass only" model and the best "aquatic mammal, home range only" model - Excel Data File (MS_Data-Point_Reference-List.xlsx) => the literature references for all species maximal propagation distance values, species-level body mass values, species-level home range values, method localisation categorisations, sociality categorisations, and diet categorisations. An Open Tree Taxonomy identifier (OTT-id), common name, and taxonomical information (Order, Family, Genus, Species) are given for each species.
Description of the Data and file structure
The data contains species-level information about the maximal propagation distance of 103 mammalian vocal calls and related environmental, ecological, and biological information (with references).
The code contains all analyses for each of the datasets.
The code creates summaries for all analyses, as supplementary table outputs.
Sharing/access Information
Was data derived from another source?
Yes, the literature.
If yes, list source(s):
Data point sources are listed in 4. Excel Data File (MS_Data-Point_Reference-List.xlsx).