許多鳥類的雄鳥於生殖季會在清晨鳴唱，其主要功能可能與生殖期的吸引配偶或領域宣告有關。 造成鳥類群聚之種間晨間鳴唱時序的差異，可能與鳥類對光線的敏感程度、活動所需之最低光度、以及清晨時接受光線之時間有關。 這三者可能受到鳥種與其環境之間的交互作用影響，例如棲息的環境不同可能使鳥類適應特定的環境光度，停棲高度的差別影響鳥類在接收到光線的時間上有所不同，而覓食對象的活動能力的差異也可能影響鳥類的視覺敏銳度。 由於季節變化明顯，針對鳥類鳴唱模式的研究多半集中於溫帶地區，並發現鳥類的鳴唱活動可能隨著生殖階段的不同而產生季節性的變動。 亞熱帶 / 熱帶地區直到最近十幾年來才探討鳥類季節性鳴唱模式的變化。 本研究測試三個假說，針對晨間鳴唱時序的部分包括：（一）鳥類的覓食高度與晨間鳴唱的起始時間有關、（二）鳥類的眼球體積與晨間鳴唱的起始時間有關、以及（三）鳥類覓食的食物類型比例與晨間鳴唱的起始時間有關。 另外，本研究亦想了解亞熱帶 / 熱帶地區之鳥類鳴唱模式是否同樣會有季節性的變化 ？
本研究於2007年及2008年3月至10月間，於高雄縣茂林鄉扇平生態科學園，進行鳥類鳴唱模式的記錄、覓食高度的觀察、與穿越線錄音，以及分別測量野外與各地館藏標本之鳥類頭部及眼球等相關形質與體重，進行眼球體積及與體形比例的估算，並同時採用相對眼球體積與log10（眼球體積）作為鳥類眼球體積的代表。 鳥類的食性方面，本研究蒐集鳥類食性相關的文獻以進行分析。 研究期間我記錄到的鳥類總共來自10目，26科，及55種，其中以大彎嘴畫眉（Rusty-cheeked Scimitar Babbler, Pomatorhinus erythrogenys, Vigors 1832）、五色鳥（Taiwan Barbet, Megalaima nuchalis, Gould 1863）、及繡眼畫眉（Grey-cheeked Fulvetta, Alcippe morrisonia, Swinhoe 1863）所記錄到的隻次最多及穩定。 分析結果顯示，覓食高度、相對眼球體積與晨間鳴唱時間有顯著的正相關，說明覓食高度愈低或相對眼球體積愈小之鳥種有較早的鳴唱時序。 而食性因子與晨間鳴唱時序之間則無顯著影響。 此外，鳥類所有的鳴唱參數於研究期間內均有明顯的季節性變化。
覓食高度與相對眼球體積明顯與鳥種間晨間鳴唱時序的差異相關，此項結果支持我的假說，然而相對眼球體積愈小的鳥種有較早晨間鳴唱之結果，與本研究的預期不符。 但log10（眼球體積）與晨間鳴唱時間的關係為接近顯著的負相關，符合本研究的預期，同時我發現鳥類的相對眼球體積與log10（眼球體積）呈負相關，並且先前研究已證實鳥類之實際眼球體積較大者有較佳的視覺能力，故我認為以log10（眼球體積）代表鳥類眼球體積較為適當。 本研究驗證鳥類的覓食高度為影響晨間鳴唱時序的先決因子，而相對眼球體積則為次要因子，並建議應採用log10（眼球體積）代表鳥類眼球體積，同時也提供亞熱帶 / 熱帶地區的鳥類亦會表現出季節性的鳴唱模式的證據。

Among many avian species males sing intensively at dawn during breeding seasons. This behavior has been suggested primarily for the purpose of mating, fuctioning either to attract an inter-sexual partner, to defend a territory, or both. The factors that may infuence the onset and inter-specific temporal variation in dawn singing include at least: (1) a bird’s visual sensitivity to light, (2) the necessary light level for a bird to activate its daily activity, and (3) the accessibility of light to birds at dawn. These three factors, however, may be correlated to one another through interactions between individuals and the surrounding environment, such as the food resource used by a bird, the type of habitat, and the perching and foraginig height a bird is commonly associated with. Many studies from the temperate zone also showed seasonal variation in singing pattetns of male birds in accordance with their breeding activities due to the obvious seasonality. This study took place from March to October, in 2007 and 2008, respectively, at Shanping of the Liouguei Experimental Forest, Taiwan Forestry Research Institute. Concerning about the sequence order of dawn singing, I tested hypotheses: (1) the foraging height of species is correlated to the onset time of dawn singing, (2) the eye size of species is correlated to the onset time of dawn singing, (3) the dietary composition of birds is correlated to the onset time of dawn singing. Regarding temporal singing patterns, I further examined whether birds residing in lower latitudes will also perform different singing patterns among breeding periods. Specific behavioral characteristics were recorded simultaneously with the conduction of bird censuses, including: (1) singing patterns, (2) foraging heights, and (3) song recordings of birds. Furthermore, morphometric parameters of birds were measured, and I used relative eye sizes and log10 (eye size) to represent eye sizes of birds. The dietary composition of bird species was referred to available literatures.
In total, I documented 55 Species of birds from 10 Orders and 26 Families. Rusty- cheeked Scimitar Babblers (Pomatorhinus erythrogenys, Vigors 1832), Taiwan Barbets (Megalaima nuchalis, Gould 1863), and Grey-cheeked Fulvettas (Alcippe morrisonia, Swinhoe 1863) were the most frequently recorded and most abundant species. Foraging height and relative eye size of birds were significantly and positively correlated to the onset of dawn singing among species. When the foraging height of a species was lower, and the relative eye size was smaller, the dawn singing tended to begin earlier. These results supported two of my hypotheses that foraging heights and relative eye sizes of birds are correlated to the onset of dawn singing. However, the result that birds with smaller relative eye size sang earlier at dawn contradicts to my prediction. I further found the relationship between relative eye size and log10 (eye size) was negative, and log10 (eye size) was nearly significant and negative correlated to the onset of dawn singing, that was consistent with my prediction. On the other hand, I found no significant effect of dietary composition on the onset of dawn singing. The results of my study suggested that birds’ foraging height and relative eye size were the two main features determining the onset of dawn singing among avian assemblages, but since previous study has indicated that the absolute eye size of birds could reflect their visual capability, we might use the log10 (eye size) instead of relative eye size to represent eye sizes of birds. My data also indicated that all song parameters varied within breeding season, and supported the idea that birds residing in lower latitudes will also change their singing patterns in different seasons.

Allard, H. A. 1930. The first morning song of some birds of Washington, D. C.; its relation to light. The American Naturalist 64: 436-469.
Amrhein, V. and N. Erne. 2006. Dawn singing reflects past territorial challenges in the Winter Wren. Animal Behaviour 71: 1075-1080.
Amrhein, V., H. P. Kunc, M. Naguib and D. A. Nelson. 2004. Seasonal patterns of singing activity vary with time of day in the Nightingale (Luscinia Megarhynchos). The Auk 121: 110-117.
Avery, M. I. and J. R. Krebs. 1984. Temperature and foraging success of Great Tits (Parus major) hunting for spiders. Ibis 126: 33-38.
Avisoft Bioacoustics. 2009. Avisoft-SASLab Pro 4.52. Avisoft Bioacoustics, Berlin, Germany.
Ballentine, B., A. Badyaev and G. E. Hill. 2003. Changes in Song Complexity Correspond to Periods of Female Fertility in Blue Grosbeaks (Guiraca caerulea). Ethology 109: 55-66.
Berg, K. S., R. T. Brumfield and V. Apanius. 2006. Phylogenetic and ecological determinants of the neotropical dawn chorus. Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences 273: 999-1005.
Boufford, D. E., C. H. Chen, J. J. Chen, Y. J. Chen, C. E. DeVol, and H. Funakoshi, et al. 2000. Flora of Taiwan. Vol. 5. The Editorial Committee of the Flora of Taiwan, Department of Botany, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan.
Brooke, M. d. L., S. Hanley and S. B. Laughlin. 1999. The scaling of eye size with body mass in birds. Proceedings of the Royal Society of London. Series B: Biological Sciences 266: 405-412.
Brown, T. J. and P. Handford. 2003. Why birds sing at dawn: the role of consistent song transmission. Ibis 145: 120-129.
Catchpole, C. K. 1973. The functions of advertising song in the Sedge Warbler (Acrocephalus schoenobaenus) and the Reed Warbler (A. scirpaceus). Behaviour 46: 300-320.
Catchpole, C. K. and P. J. B. Slater. 2003. Bird song: biological themes and variations. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.
Chen, C. C. and L. S. Chou. 1999. The diet of forest birds at Fushan Experimental Forest. Taiwan Journal of Forestry Sciense 14: 275-287.
Cheng, C. C. and Y. C. Lai. 2002. Biodiversity in deciduous hardwood and conifer plantations of the upper Liukuei (Shanping) area. Taiwan Journal of Forestry Sciense 17: 155-170.
Christie, P. J., D. J. Mennill and L. M. Ratcliffe. 2004. Pitch shifts and song structure indicate male quality in the dawn chorus of Black-capped Chickadees. Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology 55: 341-348.
Cody, M. L. and J. H. Brown. 1969. Song asynchrony in neighbouring bird species. Nature 222: 778-780.
Craig, R. B. 1978. An analysis of the predatory behavior of the Loggerhead Shrike. The Auk 95: 221-234.
Cuthill, I. C. and W. A. Macdonald. 1990. Experimental manipulation of the dawn and dusk chorus in the Blackbird Turdus merula. Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology 26: 209-216.
Dabelsteen, T. and N. Mathevon. 2002. Why do songbirds sing intensively at dawn? Acta Ethologica 4: 65-72.
Ding, T. S., H. C. Liao and H. W. Yuan. 2008. Breeding bird community composition in different successional vegetation in the montane coniferous forests zone of Taiwan. Forest Ecology and Management 255: 2038-2048.
Erne, N. and V. Amrhein. 2008. Long-term influence of simulated territorial intrusions on dawn and dusk singing in the Winter Wren: spring versus autumn. Journal of Ornithology 149: 479-486.
Fernández-Juricic, E., J. T. Erichsen and A. Kacelnik. 2004. Visual perception and social foraging in birds. Trends in Ecology & Evolution 19: 25-31.
Ficken, R. W., M. S. Ficken and J. P. Hailman. 1974. Temporal pattern shifts to avoid acoustic interference in singing birds. Science 183: 762-763.
Foote, J. R. 2008. Black-capped Chickadee dawn chorus singing behaviour evidence for communication networks. The degree of Doctor of Philosophy, Department of Biology, Queen’s University. Kingston, Ontario, Canada.
Foote, J. R., L. P. Fitzsimmons, D. J. Mennill and L. M. Ratcliffe. 2008a. Male Chickadees match neighbors interactively at dawn: support for the social dynamics hypothesis. Behavioral Ecology 19: 1192-1199.
Foote, J. R., L. P. Fitzsimmons, D. J. Mennill and L. M. Ratcliffe. 2008b. Tied to the nest: male Black-capped Chickadees decrease dawn chorus movement behaviour when their mate is fertile. Animal Behaviour 76: 1227-1233.
Gammon, D. E. 2004. Black-capped Chickadee dawn chorus and subsequent sexual activity. The Wilson Bulletin 116: 252-256.
Garamszegi, L. Z., A. P. Møller and J. Erritzøe. 2002. Coevolving avian eye size and brain size in relation to prey capture and nocturnality. Proceedings of the Royal Society of London. Series B: Biological Sciences 269: 961-967.
Gil, D., J. A. Graves and P. J. B. Slater. 1999. Seasonal patterns of singing in the willow warbler: evidence against the fertility announcement hypothesis. Animal Behaviour 58: 995-1000.
Hart, N. S. 2001a. Variations in cone photoreceptor abundance and the visual ecology of birds. Journal of Comparative Physiology A: Neuroethology, Sensory, Neural, and Behavioral Physiology 187: 685-697.
Hart, N. S. 2001b. The visual ecology of avian photoreceptors. Progress in Retinal and Eye Research 20: 675-703.
Hau, M. 2008. Timing of breeding in tropical birds: mechanisms and evolutionary implications. Ornitologia Neotropical 19: 39-59.
Hau, M., M. Wikelski and J. C. Wingfield. 2000. Visual and nutritional food cues fine-tune timing of reproduction in a neotropical rainforest bird. Journal of Experimental Zoology 286: 494-504.
Henwood, K. and A. Fabrick. 1979. A quantitative analysis of the dawn chorus: temporal selection for communicatory optimization. The American Naturalist 114: 260-274.
Hutchinson, J. M. C. 2002. Two explanations of the dawn chorus compared: how monotonically changing light levels favour a short break from singing. Animal Behaviour 64: 527-539.
Minitab Inc. 2003. MINITAB® Release 14.12.0 Statistical Software. Minitab Inc., Pennsylvania, USA.
Ishizuka, T. 2008. Changes in song structure and singing pattern of the Grey Thrush Turdus cardis in response to song playback and mate removal experiments. Ornithological Science 7: 157-161.
IUCN. 2009. IUCN Red List of threatened species. http://www.iucnredlist.org/.
Kacelnik, A. 1979. The foraging efficiency of great tits (Parus major L.) in relation to light intensity. Animal Behaviour 27: 237-241.
Kacelnik, A. and J. R. Krebs. 1982. The dawn chorus in the Great Tit (Parus major): proximate and ultimate causes. Behaviour 83: 287-309.
Komdeur, J. 1996. Seasonal timing of reproduction in a tropical bird, the Seychelles Warbler: a field experiment using translocation. J Biol Rhythms 11: 333-346.
Krebs, C. J. 1999. Ecological methodology. Second edition. Addison Wesley Longman, California.
Kroodsma, D. E. 1976. Reproductive development in a female songbird: differential stimulation by quality of male song. Science 192: 574-575.
Kunc, H. P., V. Amrhein and M. Naguib. 2005. Seasonal variation in dawn song characteristics in the common nightingale. Animal Behaviour 70: 1265-1271.
Kunc, H. P., V. Amrhein and M. Naguib. 2006. Vocal interactions in Nightingales, Luscinia megarhynchos: more aggressive males have higher pairing success. Animal Behaviour 72: 25-30.
Kunc, H. P., V. Amrhein and M. Naguib. 2007. Vocal interactions in Common Nightingales (Luscinia megarhynchos): males take it easy after pairing. Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology 61: 557-563.
Lein, M. R. 2007. Patterns of dawn singing by Buff-breasted Flycatchers. Journal of Field Ornithology 78: 343 - 351.
Liu, W. C. 2004. The effect of neighbours and females on dawn and daytime singing behaviours by male Chipping Sparrows. Animal Behaviour 68: 39-44.
Liu, W. C. and D. E. Kroodsma. 2007. Dawn and daytime singing behavior of Chipping Sparrows (Spizella passerina). The Auk 124: 44-52.
Logan, C. A. 1983. Reproductively Dependent Song Cyclicity in Mated Male Mockingbirds (Mimus polyglottos). The Auk 100: 404-413.
Mace, R. 1987. The dawn chorus in the Great Tit Paras major is directly related to female fertility. Nature 330: 745-746.
Magurran, A. E. 1988. Ecological diversity and its measurement. Princeton University Press, New Jersey.
McNeil, R., A. McSween and P. Lachapelle. 2005. Comparison of the retinal structure and function in four bird species as a function of the time they start singing in the morning. Brain, Behavior and Evolution 65: 202-214.
Minitab Inc. 2003. MINITAB® Release 14.12.0 Statistical Software. Minitab Inc., Pennsylvania, USA.
Møller, A. P. 1991. Why mated songbirds sing so much: mate guarding and male announcement of mate fertility status. The American Naturalist 138: 994-1014.
Oort, H. v., K. A. Otter, K. T. Fort and C. I. Holschuh. 2006. Habitat quality, social dominance and dawn chorus song output in Black-capped Chickadees. Ethology 112: 772-778.
Otter, K., B. Chruszcz and L. Ratcliffe. 1997. Honest advertisement and song output during the dawn chorus of Black-capped Chickadees. Behavioral Ecology 8: 167-173.
Otter, K. and L. Ratcliffe. 1993. Changes in singing behavior of male black-capped chickadees (Parus atricapillus) following mate removal. Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology 33: 409-414.
Pärt, T. 1991. Is dawn singing related to paternity insurance? The case of the collared flycatcher. Animal Behaviour 41: 451-456.
Pinxten, R. and M. Eens. 1998. Male Starlings Sing Most in the Late Morning, following Egg-Laying: A Strategy to Protect Their Paternity? Behaviour 135: 1197-1211
Poesel, A., T. Dabelsteen and S. B. Pedersen. 2004. Dawn song of male Blue Tits as a predictor of competitiveness in midmorning singing interactions. Acta Ethologica 6: 65-71.
Popp, J. W., R. W. Ficken and J. A. Reinartz. 1985. Short-term temporal avoidance of interspecific acoustic interference among forest birds. The Auk 102: 744-748.
Remsen, J. V. and T. A. Parker. 1984. Arboreal dead-leaf-searching birds of the neotropics. The Condor 86: 36-41.
Ritchison, G. 1988. Song repertoires and the singing behavior of male Northern Cardinals. The Wilson Bulletin 100: 583-603.
Searcy, W. A., S. Nowicki and C. Hogan. 2000. Song type variants and aggressive context. Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology 48: 358-363.
Slagsvold, T. 1977. Bird song activity in relation to breeding cycle, spring weather, and environmental phenology. Ornis Scandinavica 8: 197-222
Slagsvold, T. 1996. Dawn and dusk singing of male American Robins in relation to female behavior. The Wilson Bulletin 108: 507-515.
Slagsvold, T., S. Dale and G. P. Sætre. 1994. Dawn singing in the Great Tit (Parus major): mate attraction, mate guarding, or territorial defence? . Behaviour 131: 115-138.
SPSS Inc. 2000. SPSS 12.0. SPSS Inc., Chicago, Illinois, USA.
Staicer, C. A. 1996. Honest advertisement of pairing status: evidence from a tropical resident Wood-Warbler. Animal Behaviour 51: 375-390.
Sutherland, W. J., I. Newton and R. E. Green 2004. Bird ecology and conservation: a handbook of techniques. Oxford University Press, New York.
Thomas, R. J. 1999. The effect of variability in the food supply on the daily singing routines of European Robins: a test of a stochastic dynamic programming model. Animal Behaviour 57: 365-369.
Thomas, R. J., T. Széskely, I. C. Cuthill, D. G. C. Harper, S. E. Newson, et al. 2002. Eye size in birds and the timing of song at dawn. Proceedings of the Royal Society of London. Series B: Biological Sciences 269: 831-837.
Thomas, R. J., T. Széskely, R. F. Powell and I. C. Cuthill. 2006. Eye size, foraging methods and the timing of foraging in shorebirds. Functional Ecology 20: 157-165.
Titus, R. C., C. R. Chandler, E. D. Ketterson and V. Nolan Jr. 1997. Song rates of dark-eyed juncos do not increase when females are fertile. Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology 41: 165-169.
Turner, W. C. and C. A. Barber. 2004. Male Song Sparrows Melospiza melodia do not announce their female's fertility. Journal of Avian Biology 35: 483-486.
Welling, P., K. Koivula and K. Lahti. 1995. The dawn chorus is linked with female fertility in the Willow Tit Parus montanus. Journal of Avian Biology 26: 241-246.
Welling, P., K. Koivula and M. Orell. 1997. Dawn chorus and female behaviour in the Willow Tit (Parus montanus). Ibis 139: 1-3.
Young, A. M. 1981. Temporal selection for communicatory optimization: the dawn-dusk chorus as an adaptation in tropical cicadas. The American Naturalist 117: 826.
Zar, J. H. 2010. Biostatistical analysis. Fifth edition. Prentice Hall, Upper Saddle River, New Jercy, USA.
中央氣象局全球資訊網 http://www.cwb.gov.tw。
中華民國野鳥學會 http://www.bird.org.tw。
王培蓉。1995。扇平自然教育區步道解說手冊。林業叢刊第65號。臺灣省林業試驗所。臺北。臺灣。
朱榮三。2003。植物資源在解說應用上之研究：以扇平森林生態科學園為例。國立屏東科技大學森林系碩士論文。屏東。臺灣。
行政院農委會特有生物研究保育中心 http://tesri.coa.gov.tw。
吳禎祺。2008。北大武山區森林鳥類群聚、食性和海拔遷移。國立屏東科技大學野生動物保育研究所碩士論文。屏東。臺灣。
吳慶祥、杜銘章、黃雪嬌、侯美玲、莊雪芳等。1979。扇平山區動物採集報告。師大生物學報 14: 67-73。
林振榮。1977。扇平自然教育區賞鳥手冊。林業叢刊第70號。臺灣省林業試驗所。臺北。臺灣。
林維治。1996。林維治先生竹類論文集。林業叢刊第69號。臺灣省林業試驗所。臺北。臺灣。
林函瑜。2009。台灣山區燕雀目鳥類舌部形態與其食性之關係。國立成功大學生物多樣性研究所碩士論文。臺南。臺灣。
金恆鑣、何華仁、與張乃航。1990。扇平與南鳳山地區的鳥類調查報告。行政院農業委員會。臺北。臺灣。
蔡達全。1995。扇平樹木標本園。林業叢刊第64號。臺灣省林業試驗所。臺北。臺灣。
蘇毓智。2005。藤枝與扇平地區腐生性盤菌之形態分類與物種組成。國立高雄師範大學生物科學研究所碩士。高雄。臺灣。