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Author |
Cooper, M.A.; Berntein, I.S.; Hemelrijk, C.K. |
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Title |
Reconciliation and relationship quality in Assamese macaques (Macaca assamensis) |
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Journal Article |
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Year |
2005 |
Publication |
American journal of primatology |
Abbreviated Journal |
Am. J. Primatol. |
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Volume |
65 |
Issue |
3 |
Pages |
269-282 |
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Keywords |
Aggression; Animals; Female; Macaca/*psychology; Male; Sex Factors; *Social Behavior |
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Abstract |
A consistent conclusion in reconciliation research is that animals that reconcile are likely to have strong social bonds. This has led to the hypothesis that reconciliation occurs most often between valuable social partners. We tested this hypothesis in a group of Assamese macaques (Macaca assamensis) living near a temple in Assam, India. Using focal sample and ad libitum data collection, we recorded the occurrence of reconciliation, grooming, and agonistic aiding, and the outcomes of approach. We used matrix association methods (TauKr correlation) to correlate reconciliation with grooming, aiding, and approach outcome. Females reconciled more often with females with which they had stronger grooming and aiding relationships. The correlation between reconciliation and aiding was significant for support to the aggressor and the victim. In contrast, no such correlations with reconciliation were found for males. This study provides evidence that females reconcile most often with valuable and compatible social partners. The results do not support the relationship-quality hypothesis for males, and we suggest that future studies give more consideration to the possibility that males reconcile for reasons other than to repair relationships with valuable partners. |
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Department of Psychology, Georgia State University, Atlanta, Georgia 30302-3966, USA. biomcc@langate.gsu.edu |
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0275-2565 |
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PMID:15772987 |
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refbase @ user @ |
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2875 |
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Author |
Palagi, E.; Paoli, T.; Tarli, S.B. |
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Title |
Reconciliation and consolation in captive bonobos (Pan paniscus) |
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Journal Article |
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Year |
2004 |
Publication |
American journal of primatology |
Abbreviated Journal |
Am. J. Primatol. |
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Volume |
62 |
Issue |
1 |
Pages |
15-30 |
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Keywords |
Aggression/psychology; *Agonistic Behavior; Animals; Animals, Zoo/*psychology; *Conflict (Psychology); *Empathy; Female; Male; Pan paniscus/*psychology; Sex Factors; *Social Behavior; Time Factors |
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Abstract |
Although reconciliation in bonobos (Pan paniscus) has previously been described, it has not been analyzed heretofore by the postconflict (PC) match-control (MC) method. Furthermore, although reconciliation has been investigated before in this species, consolation has not. In this study we analyzed agonistic and affiliative contacts in all sex-class combinations to clarify and reevaluate the occurrence of reconciliation in bonobos via the PC-MC method. We also investigated the occurrence of consolation by analyzing the victims' triadic contact tendency (TCT), the influence of the sex of victims, and the relative occurrence of consolation and reconciliation. We collected 167 pairs of PC-MC observations in a captive group of bonobos (in Apeldoorn, The Netherlands). The conciliatory tendency (CCT) we obtained was tendentially lower than the mean value previously found for Yerkes captive chimpanzees. Close relationships, which were present in all female-female (FF) and some male-female (MF) dyads, positively affected reconciliation rates. When only adult PC-MC pairs (157) were considered, the mean TCTs and CCTs did not differ significantly. When we focused on types of PC affiliative contact, in the case of consolation we found a striking preference for sociosexual patterns. As to the relative occurrence of consolation and reconciliation, the highest level of the former was found in the absence of the latter. When reconciliation took place, consolation generally preceded it, suggesting that consolation may be a substitutive behavior. Our findings suggest that even if reconciliation remains the best option, consolation may be an alternative substitute for reconciliation that is used to buffer the tension originating from an unresolved conflict. Reconciliation and consolation are complex phenomena that are probably related to the life history of a group. Given that few studies have been conducted on this subject, we can not at this time make any generalizations regarding conflict resolution in certain species by comparing results among studies. |
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Centro Interdipartimentale Museo di Storia Naturale e del Territorio, Universita di Pisa, Pisa, Italy. betta.palagi@museo.unipi.it |
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0275-2565 |
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PMID:14752810 |
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refbase @ user @ |
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2876 |
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Author |
Cooper, M.A.; Bernstein, I.S. |
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Title |
Counter aggression and reconciliation in Assamese macaques (Macaca assamensis) |
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Journal Article |
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Year |
2002 |
Publication |
American journal of primatology |
Abbreviated Journal |
Am. J. Primatol. |
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Volume |
56 |
Issue |
4 |
Pages |
215-230 |
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*Aggression; Animals; Female; *Macaca; Male; Phylogeny; Sex Factors; *Social Behavior; Social Dominance |
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Patterns of aggressive and affiliative behavior, such as counter aggression and reconciliation, are said to covary in the genus Macaca; this is referred to as the systematic variation hypothesis. These behavior patterns constitute a species dominance style. Van Schaik's [1989] socioecological model explains dominance style in macaques in terms of within- and between-group contest competition. Dominance style is also said to correlate with phylogeny in macaques. The present study was undertaken to examine phylogenetic and socioecological explanations of dominance style, as well as the systematic variation hypothesis. We collected data on counter aggression and reconciliation from a habituated group of Assamese macaques (Macaca assamensis) at the Tukeswari Temple in Assam, India. The proportion of agonistic episodes that involved counter aggression was relatively low. Counter aggression, however, occurred more often among males than among females, and it was most common when females initiated aggression against males. The conciliatory tendency for this group of Assamese macaques was 11.2%. The frequency of reconciliation was low for fights among males and for fights among females, but reconciliation was particularly rare for opposite-sexed opponents. Female social relationships were consistent with the systematic variation hypothesis, and suggest a despotic dominance style. A despotic dominance style in Assamese macaques weakens the correlation between dominance style and phylogeny in macaques, but it is not inconsistent with the socioecological model. Male-female relationships were not well explained by the despotic-egalitarian framework, and males may well have more tolerant social relationships than do females. Sex differences need to be considered when categorizing species according to dominance style. |
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Department of Psychology, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia, USA. biomcc@langate.gsu.edu |
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0275-2565 |
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PMID:11948638 |
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refbase @ user @ |
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2877 |
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Pereira, M.E.; Schill, J.L.; Charles, E.P. |
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Title |
Reconciliation in captive Guyanese squirrel monkeys (Saimiri sciureus) |
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Journal Article |
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Year |
2000 |
Publication |
American journal of primatology |
Abbreviated Journal |
Am. J. Primatol. |
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50 |
Issue |
2 |
Pages |
159-167 |
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Aggression; Agonistic Behavior; Animals; Conflict (Psychology); Female; Guyana; Male; Saimiri/*psychology; *Social Behavior; Social Dominance |
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The tendency for agonistic interaction to increase the probability of friendly interaction between social partners has been demonstrated across a range of Old World primates. While research on such post-conflict behavior proceeds into an hypothesis-testing phase, new comparative information must accumulate to provide full phylogenetic perspective on primate social behavior. Data from New World and prosimian primates are yet extremely limited. We studied captive squirrel monkeys (Saimiri sciureus) via post-conflict (PC) and matched control (MC) observations and analyzed results using both the PC-MC and time-rule methods. Former opponents maintaining affiliative relationships soon engaged in friendly interaction following large proportions of agonistic interactions, whereas non-affiliated individuals, including virtually all male-female pairs, reconciled conflicts rarely. Close-proximity approaching and huddling contact constituted the principal modes of post-conflict amicability. Agonistic interactions of relatively high intensity were most likely to be reconciled and most likely to be reconciled via physical contact. High vulnerability of Saimiri to predation may have favored this species' strong inclination to reconcile soon after agonistic interaction. Research on free-living populations of this and other primate species is needed to illuminate similarities and differences across taxa. |
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Department of Biology and Program in Animal Behavior, Bucknell University, Lewisburg, Pennsylvania 17837, USA. mpereira@bucknell.edu |
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0275-2565 |
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PMID:10676712 |
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refbase @ user @ |
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2878 |
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Araba, B.D.; Crowell-Davis, S.L. |
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Title |
Dominance relationships and aggression of foals (Equus caballus) |
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Journal Article |
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Year |
1994 |
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Applied Animal Behaviour Science |
Abbreviated Journal |
Appl. Anim. Behav. Sci. |
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41 |
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1-2 |
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1-25 |
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aggression; dominance; horse; Equus caballus |
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Studied a herd of 15 Belgian brood-mares and 10 foals. Specific aspects of social structure studied were dominance-subordinance relationships, preferred associates, social spacing, aggression rates, the frequency of aggressions administered down the dominance hierarchy, and interactive play bouts. The rank order of the foals, both before and after weaning, was positively correlated with the rank order of their dams. There was also a significant relationship between a foal's rank and its total aggression or aggression rate per subordinate post-weaning. Higher ranking foals had higher rates of aggression. Over 80% of threats were directed down the dominance hierachy. The play-rank order of the foals, scored by the number of times foal left a play bout, was not significantly correlated with the rank order as scored by agonistic interactions. -from Authors |
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Dept Anatomy and Radiology, Univ of Georgia, Athens, GA, USA |
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01681591 (Issn) |
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refbase @ user @ |
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790 |
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Author |
Feuerstein, N.; Terkel, J. |
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Title |
Interrelationships of dogs (Canis familiaris) and cats (Felis catus L.) living under the same roof |
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Journal Article |
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2008 |
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Applied Animal Behaviour Science |
Abbreviated Journal |
Appl. Anim. Behav. Sci. |
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113 |
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1-3 |
Pages |
150-165 |
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Cats; Dogs; Shared home; Interrelationship; Aggression; Amicability; Indifference; Adaptation |
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In the process of domestication, dogs (Canis familiaris) and cats (Felis catus) have undergone thousands of years of genetic changes that have adapted them to the human environment. Both species have acquired a global distribution and it has become quite common to find homes with the two living side by side. Nevertheless, there is widespread belief that interspecific communication between dogs and cats is problematic, stemming from their separate evolutionary development and different social structures. Consequently, many people considering possible adoption of both species are concerned about their ability to get along. Interrelationships of dogs and cats living together were studied here in an attempt to determine the main factors influencing the type of relationship likely to develop between the two species. Two approaches were used: (1) a questionnaire completed by owners of both dog(s) and cat(s), which provided a broad database of the animals' behaviors; and (2) observations carried out in participants' homes on their dog-cat interactions. Two separate ethograms for dogs and cats served for analyses of their body language. The findings revealed the following: Both species showed a similar ability to establish a relatively amicable relationship with the other species; the animals' gender had little influence on the nature of their interrelationship; and adoption of the cat prior to the dog appears to conduce to establishing an amicable relationship, as does their first encounter taking place at an early age (up to 6 months of age in cats and up to 1 year in dogs). The findings also suggest that the majority of these dogs and cats understood the particular body language displayed by one animal that has an opposite meaning for the other species; and that the earlier the age of first encounter between the two, the better this understanding. It can be concluded that exposure of both species at an early age to the presence of the other facilitates the learning of each other's body language, and the consequent establishment of an amicable relationship. A better understanding of the various factors that contribute to determining the two species' relationship should not only improve the quality of life of these pets, but also reassure and encourage more people to adopt both cat and dog. |
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Equine Behaviour @ team @ |
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4757 |
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Pollard, J.C.; Littlejohn, R.P. |
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The effects of pen size on the behaviour of farmed red deer stags confined in yards |
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Journal Article |
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1996 |
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Applied Animal Behaviour Science |
Abbreviated Journal |
Appl. Anim. Behav. Sci. |
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47 |
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3-4 |
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247-253 |
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Red deer; Handling; Density; Aggression; Farming |
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To determine whether pen size affected the behaviour and welfare of farmed red deer confined temporarily in yards, four groups of ten 2-year-old stags were confined for 40 min or 2 days in each of spring and summer, in either large (5 m × 4 m ) or small (2.5 m × 4) pens. In the small pens, wall pacing and vertical/horizontal head movements at the walls were more frequently observed (P < 0.05) and were carried out by a greater percentage of the deer (P < 0.001), and distances between individuals were smaller (P < 0.01), than observations in the large pens. Aggressive activities varied seasonally, with head-butting and chasing being seen most frequently in the spring (P < 0.05) and biting and kicking being seen most frequently in the summer (P < 0.05), and the overall frequency of aggressive activities was low in summer. In spring, in small pens there were fewer threats to head-butt, head butts by moving animals, and less stepping activity than in large pens (P < 0.05). In summer, in small pens there were more threats to butt and more stepping activity than in the large pens (P < 0.05). In both seasons, aggressive activities were correlated with wall pacing (r = 0.58 and 0.55, respectively). It was concluded that the effect of pen size on the frequency and nature of aggressive and other activities varied seasonally. In order minimise aggression and stepping activity, small pens were favoured in spring and large pens were favoured in summer. However, in both seasons there were greater inter-individual distances and reduced pacing and head movements at the walls in large pens. This latter finding may indicate that the large pens were less aversive to the deer, regardless of season. |
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Equine Behaviour @ team @ |
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5472 |
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Fureix, C.; Bourjade, M.; Henry, S.; Sankey, C.; Hausberger, M. |
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Exploring aggression regulation in managed groups of horses Equus caballus |
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2012 |
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Applied Animal Behaviour Science |
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Appl. Anim. Behav. Sci. |
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138 |
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3–4 |
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216-228 |
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Horses; Social behaviour; Aggression regulation; Coping in group; Management; Social development |
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Horses are highly social animals that have evolved to live in social groups. However, in modern husbandry systems, single housing prevails where horses experience social isolation, a challenge-to-welfare factor. One major reason for this single housing is the owners’ concerns that horses may injure each other during aggressive encounters. However, in natural conditions, serious injuries due to aggressive encounters are rare. What could therefore explain the claimed risks of group living for domestic horses? Basing our questioning on the current knowledge of the social life of horses in natural conditions, we review different practices that may lead to higher levels of aggression in horses and propose practical solutions. Observations of natural and feral horses mostly indicate a predominance of low frequencies and mild forms of aggression, based on subtle communication signals and ritualized displays and made possible by group stability (i.e. stable composition), dominance hierarchy and learning of appropriate social skills by young horses. Obviously, adults play a major role here in canalizing undesirable behaviours, and social experience during development, associated with a diversity of social partners, seems to be a prerequisite for the young horse to become socially skilled. Given the natural propensity of horses to have a regulation of aggression in groups, the tendency to display more aggression in groups of domestic horses under some management practices seems clearly related to the conditions offered. We therefore review the managing practices that could trigger aggressiveness in horses. Non social practices (space, resource availability) and social practices (group size, stability of membership, composition and opportunities for social experiences during development) in groups of domestic horses are discussed here. Finally, we propose simple practical solutions leading to more peaceful interactions in groups of domestic horses, based on the knowledge of horses’ natural social life which therefore should be enhanced (e.g. ensuring roughage availability, favouring group stability, introducing socially experienced adults in groups of young horses, etc.). The state of the art indicates that many questions still need to be answered. Given the importance of the associated welfare issues and the consequences on the use of horses, further research is required, which could benefit horses… and humans. |
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Equine Behaviour @ team @ |
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5648 |
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Austin, N.P.; Rogers, L.J. |
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Lateralization of agonistic and vigilance responses in Przewalski horses (Equus przewalskii) |
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2014 |
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Applied Animal Behaviour Science |
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151 |
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43-50 |
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Behavioural lateralization: Eye preference; Limb preference; Aggression; Vigilance; Reactivity; Przewalski horses |
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tEye and limb preferences were scored in the closest undomesticated relative of Equuscaballus using the same methods as used previously to study laterality in feral horses.Observations were made of 33 Przewalski horses (Equus ferus przewalskii) (male N = 20,female N = 13) living under natural social conditions on a large reserve in France. Signifi-cant left-eye/side biases were found in agonistic interactions within harem bands (M ± SEbias to left 58% ± 0.01 for threats, P < 0.001; 68% ± 0.05 for attacks; P < 0.001) and in stallionfights (threats, 52% ± 0.01 left, P < 0.001; attacks, 63% ± 0.02 left, P < 0.001): as many as 80%of the horses were significantly lateralized in attack responses within harem bands. Lat-erality of vigilance was measured as lifting up the head from grazing and turning it to theleft or right side: a directional bias to the left was found (M ± SE 53% ± 0.02 left, P < 0.001).Side bias in reactivity was calculated as the percent of head lifts above the level of thewithers on the left or right side and this was also left side biased (M ± SE 73% ± 0.03 left,P < 0.001). These results indicate right-hemisphere specialization for control of aggressionand responses to novelty. The left bias in attack scores within harem bands was strongerin males than females (P = 0.024) and in immature than adult horses (P = 0.032). Immaturehorses were also more strongly lateralized than adults in vigilance scores (P = 0.022), whichmay suggest that experience reduces these side biases. Our results show that Przewalskihorses exhibit left eye preferences, as do feral horses, and do so even more strongly thanferal horses. Considering feral and Przewalski horses together, we deduce that ancestralhorses had similar lateral biases. Also similar to feral horses, the Przewalski horses showedno significant forelimb preference at the group level or in the majority of horses at theindividual level, confirming the hypothesis that previously reported limb preferences indomestic breeds are entrained or generated by breed-specific selection. |
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Equine Behaviour @ team @ |
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5768 |
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Ahrendt, L.P.; Christensen, J.W.; Ladewig, J. |
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The ability of horses to learn an instrumental task through social observation |
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2012 |
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Applied Animal Behaviour Science |
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Appl. Anim. Behav. Sci. |
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139 |
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1 |
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105-113 |
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Horse; Social learning; Social interaction; Instrumental task; Investigative behaviour; Aggression |
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The ability of horses to learn through social observation may ease the implementation of new management systems, because the use of automatic feeders etc. by naive horses could be facilitated by observation of experienced horses. However, previous studies found no documentation for observational learning abilities in horses. This study aimed to investigate the ability of horses to learn an instrumental task from a familiar conspecific when social interaction was allowed during the demonstration. Two similar experiments were performed. In the first experiment, Observer horses (n=11) participated in ten successive demonstrations, where a trained Demonstrator opened an operant device by pushing a sliding lid aside with the muzzle in order to obtain a food reward. Immediately after the demonstrations the Observer horses were given the opportunity to operate the device alone. Control horses (n=11) were aware that the device contained food but were presented to the operant device without demonstration of the task. The learning criterion was at least two openings. Accomplishment of and latency to accomplish the learning criterion, and investigative behaviour towards the operant device were recorded. Five Observers and one Control, out of the eleven horses in each treatment group, accomplished the learning criterion. Even though this presents a high odds ratio (OR) in favour of the Observer treatment (OR=7.6), there was no significant difference between the treatment groups (P=0.15). Analysis of investigative behaviour showed, however, that the demonstrations increased the motivation of the Observer horses to investigate the device. Subsequently, a similar experiment was performed in a practical setting with 44 test horses (mixed age, gender and breed). We used the same operant device and the same number and type of demonstrations, although the horses were held on a loose rope to minimise aggression. In this second experiment, six of 23 Observer horses and five of 21 Control horses learned the instrumental task, representing no influence of the demonstration. Thus, this study did not demonstrate an ability of horses to learn an instrumental task through observation. |
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0168-1591 |
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Equine Behaviour @ team @ S0168-1591(12)00087-1 |
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5773 |
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