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Author Macphail, E.M.; Boldhuis, J.J doi  openurl
  Title The evolution of intelligence: adaptive specializations versusgeneral process Type Journal Article
  Year 2001 Publication Biological Reviews Abbreviated Journal  
  Volume 76 Issue 3 Pages 341-364  
  Keywords (down) biological constraints, corvids, ecology, food-storing birds, hippocampal size, parids, spatial learning, spatial memory, spatial module.  
  Abstract Darwin argued that between-species differences in intelligence were differences of degree, not of kind. The contemporary ecological approach to animal cognition argues that animals have evolved species-specific and problem-specific processes to solve problems associated with their particular ecological niches: thus different species use different processes, and within a species, different processes are used to tackle problems involving different inputs. This approach contrasts both with Darwin's view and with the general process view, according to which the same central processes of learning and memory are used across an extensive range of problems involving very different inputs. We review evidence relevant to the claim that the learning and memory performance of non-human animals varies according to the nature of the stimuli involved. We first discuss the resource distribution hypothesis, olfactory learning-set formation, and the 'biological constraints' literature, but find no convincing support from these topics for the ecological account of cognition. We then discuss the claim that the performance of birds in spatial tasks of learning and memory is superior in species that depend heavily upon stored food compared to species that either show less dependence upon stored food or do not store food. If it could be shown that storing species enjoy a superiority specifically in spatial (and not non-spatial) tasks, this would argue that spatial tasks are indeed solved using different processes from those used in non-spatial tasks. Our review of this literature does not find a consistent superiority of storing over non-storing birds in spatial tasks, and, in particular, no evidence of enhanced superiority of storing species when the task demands are increased, by, for example, increasing the number of items to be recalled or the duration of the retention period. We discuss also the observation that the hippocampus of storing birds is larger than that of non-storing birds, and find evidence contrary to the view that hippocampal enlargement is associated with enhanced spatial memory; we are, however, unable to suggest a convincing alternative explanation for hippocampal enlargement. The failure to find solid support for the ecological view supports the view that there are no qualitative differences in cognition between animal species in the processes of learning and memory. We also argue that our review supports our contention that speculation about the phylogenetic development and function of behavioural processes does not provide a solid basis for gaining insight into the nature of those processes. We end by confessing to a belief in one major qualitative difference in cognition in animals: we believe that humans alone are capable of acquiring language, and that it is this capacity that divides our intelligence so sharply from non-human intelligence.  
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  Notes Approved no  
  Call Number Equine Behaviour @ team @ Serial 4797  
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Author Zhou, W.-X.; Sornette, D.; Hill, R.A.; Dunbar, R.I.M. doi  openurl
  Title Discrete hierarchical organization of social group sizes Type Journal Article
  Year 2005 Publication Proceedings. Biological sciences / The Royal Society Abbreviated Journal Proc Biol Sci  
  Volume 272 Issue 1561 Pages 439-444  
  Keywords (down) Anthropology, Cultural; *Group Structure; Humans; *Models, Biological; *Social Behavior; *Social Environment  
  Abstract The 'social brain hypothesis' for the evolution of large brains in primates has led to evidence for the coevolution of neocortical size and social group sizes, suggesting that there is a cognitive constraint on group size that depends, in some way, on the volume of neural material available for processing and synthesizing information on social relationships. More recently, work on both human and non-human primates has suggested that social groups are often hierarchically structured. We combine data on human grouping patterns in a comprehensive and systematic study. Using fractal analysis, we identify, with high statistical confidence, a discrete hierarchy of group sizes with a preferred scaling ratio close to three: rather than a single or a continuous spectrum of group sizes, humans spontaneously form groups of preferred sizes organized in a geometrical series approximating 3-5, 9-15, 30-45, etc. Such discrete scale invariance could be related to that identified in signatures of herding behaviour in financial markets and might reflect a hierarchical processing of social nearness by human brains.  
  Address State Key Laboratory of Chemical Reaction Engineering, East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai 200237, China  
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  ISSN 0962-8452 ISBN Medium  
  Area Expedition Conference  
  Notes PMID:15734699 Approved no  
  Call Number refbase @ user @ Serial 549  
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Author Mettke-Hofmann, C.; Gwinner, E. doi  openurl
  Title Long-term memory for a life on the move Type Journal Article
  Year 2003 Publication Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America Abbreviated Journal Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.  
  Volume 100 Issue 10 Pages 5863-5866  
  Keywords (down) Animals; Germany; Israel; Memory/*physiology; Models, Biological; Periodicity; Songbirds/*physiology  
  Abstract Evidence is accumulating that cognitive abilities are shaped by the specific ecological conditions to which animals are exposed. Long-distance migratory birds may provide a striking example of this. Field observations have shown that, at least in some species, a substantial proportion of individuals return to the same breeding, wintering, and stopover sites in successive years. This observation suggests that migrants have evolved special cognitive abilities that enable them to accomplish these feats. Here we show that memory of a particular feeding site persisted for at least 12 months in a long-distance migrant, whereas a closely related nonmigrant could remember such a site for only 2 weeks. Thus, it seems that the migratory lifestyle has influenced the learning and memorizing capacities of migratory birds. These results build a bridge between field observations suggesting special memorization feats of migratory birds and previous neuroanatomical results from the same two species indicating an increase in relative hippocampal size from the first to the second year of life in the migrant but not in the nonmigrant.  
  Address Max Planck Research Centre for Ornithology, Department of Biological Rhythms and Behaviour, Von-der-Tann-Strasse 7, 82346 Andechs, Germany. mettke-hofmann@erl.ornithol.mpg.de  
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  ISSN 0027-8424 ISBN Medium  
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  Notes PMID:12719527 Approved no  
  Call Number refbase @ user @ Serial 511  
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Author Joubert, L.; Oudar, J.; Hannoun, C.; Beytout, D.; Corniou, B.; Guillon, J.C.; Panthier, R. openurl 
  Title [Epidemiology of the West Nile virus: study of a focus in Camargue. IV. Meningo-encephalomyelitis of the horse] Type Journal Article
  Year 1970 Publication Annales de l'Institut Pasteur Abbreviated Journal Ann Inst Pasteur (Paris)  
  Volume 118 Issue 2 Pages 239-247  
  Keywords (down) Animals; Ecology; Encephalitis Viruses/*isolation & purification; Encephalomyelitis, Equine/*epidemiology/immunology; France; Hemagglutination Inhibition Tests; Meningoencephalitis/*veterinary; Neurologic Manifestations; Serologic Tests  
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  Language French Summary Language Original Title Epidemiologie du virus West Nile: etude d'un foyer en Camargue. IV. La meningo-encephalomyelite du cheval  
  Series Editor Series Title Abbreviated Series Title  
  Series Volume Series Issue Edition  
  ISSN 0020-2444 ISBN Medium  
  Area Expedition Conference  
  Notes PMID:5461277 Approved no  
  Call Number Equine Behaviour @ team @ Serial 2737  
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Author Kirkpatrick, J.F.; Liu, I.M.; Turner, J.W.J.; Naugle, R.; Keiper, R. openurl 
  Title Long-term effects of porcine zonae pellucidae immunocontraception on ovarian function in feral horses (Equus caballus) Type Journal Article
  Year 1992 Publication Journal of reproduction and fertility Abbreviated Journal J Reprod Fertil  
  Volume 94 Issue 2 Pages 437-444  
  Keywords (down) Animals; Contraception, Immunologic/*veterinary; *Egg Proteins; Estrogens, Conjugated (USP)/urine; Female; Glycoproteins/*pharmacology; Horses/immunology/*physiology; *Membrane Glycoproteins; Ovary/drug effects/*physiology; Progesterone/metabolism; *Receptors, Cell Surface; Swine/immunology; Time Factors; Zona Pellucida/*immunology  
  Abstract Ten feral mares free-roaming in Maryland, USA, were inoculated with porcine zonae pellucidae (PZP) protein before the breeding season for three consecutive years (1988-90). Ovarian function was monitored for 51 days during the peak of the breeding season after the third annual PZP inoculation, in seven of these mares and in four untreated control mares, by means of urinary oestrone conjugates and nonspecific progesterone metabolites. None of the ten inoculated mares became pregnant in 1990, compared with 55% of 20 control mares, which included two of the four monitored for ovarian function. Three of the untreated mares demonstrated apparent normal ovarian activity, characterized by preovulatory oestrogen peaks, concurrent progesterone nadirs at ovulation, breeding activity, and luteal-phase progesterone increases after ovulation. Two of the seven monitored PZP-treated mares demonstrated ovulatory cycles that did not result in conception. One was pregnant as a result of conception in 1989 and demonstrated a normal, late-gestation, endocrine profile. The remaining four PZP-treated mares revealed no evidence of ovulation, and urinary oestrogen concentrations were significantly depressed. The experiments indicated that (i) a third consecutive annual PZP booster inoculation is greater than 90% effective in preventing pregnancies in mares and (ii) three consecutive years of PZP treatment may interfere with normal ovarian function as shown by markedly depressed oestrogen secretion.  
  Address Deaconess Research Institute, Billings, MT 59102  
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  ISSN 0022-4251 ISBN Medium  
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  Notes PMID:1317449 Approved no  
  Call Number refbase @ user @ Serial 145  
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Author Spadavecchia, C.; Arendt-Nielsen, L.; Andersen, O.K.; Spadavecchia, L.; Doherr, M.; Schatzmann, U. openurl 
  Title Comparison of nociceptive withdrawal reflexes and recruitment curves between the forelimbs and hind limbs in conscious horses Type Journal Article
  Year 2003 Publication American journal of veterinary research Abbreviated Journal Am J Vet Res  
  Volume 64 Issue 6 Pages 700-707  
  Keywords (down) Animals; Consciousness; Female; Forelimb/*physiology; Hindlimb/*physiology; Horses/*physiology; Male; Nociceptors/physiology; Pain/*physiopathology/*veterinary; Pain Threshold/physiology; Recruitment, Neurophysiological/physiology; Reflex/*physiology  
  Abstract OBJECTIVE: To compare nociceptive withdrawal reflexes (NWRs) evoked from the distal aspect of the left forelimb and hind limb in conscious standing horses and to investigate NWR recruitment for graded electrical stimulation intensities. ANIMALS: 20 adult horses. PROCEDURE: Surface electromyographic (EMG) activity evoked by transcutaneous electrical stimulation of the digital palmar (or plantar) nerve was recorded from the common digital extensor and cranial tibial muscles. Stimuli consisted of 25-millisecond train-of-5 constant current pulses. Current intensity was gradually increased until NWR threshold intensity was reached. The EMG signal was analyzed for quantification of the NWR. Behavioral responses accompanying the reflex were scored (scale, 0 to 5). The NWR recruitment curves were determined at 0.9, 1.1, 1.2, and 1.3 times the NWR threshold intensity. RESULTS: The NWR threshold was significantly higher for the hind limb (median value, 6.6 mA; range, 3 to 10 mA) than the forelimb (median, 3 mA; range, 1.7 to 5.5 mA). The NWR of the hind limb had a significantly longer latency (median, 122.8 milliseconds; range, 106 to 172 milliseconds), compared with the forelimb (median, 98 milliseconds; range, 86 to 137 milliseconds), and it was associated with significantly stronger behavioral reactions. Gradual increase of NWR amplitude was evident at increasing stimulation intensities and supported by the behavioral observations. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE: We documented NWRs evoked from the forelimb and hind limb and their recruitment with stimuli of increasing intensity in horses. These results provide a basis for use of NWRs in studies on nociceptive modulation in horses.  
  Address Department of Clinical Veterinary Sciences, University of Berne, Switzerland  
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  ISSN 0002-9645 ISBN Medium  
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  Notes PMID:12828255 Approved no  
  Call Number refbase @ user @ Serial 93  
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Author Flack, J.C.; Girvan, M.; de Waal, F.B.M.; Krakauer, D.C. doi  openurl
  Title Policing stabilizes construction of social niches in primates Type Journal Article
  Year 2006 Publication Nature Abbreviated Journal Nature  
  Volume 439 Issue 7075 Pages 426-429  
  Keywords (down) Animals; Conflict (Psychology); Female; Macaca nemestrina/*physiology/*psychology; Male; Models, Biological; *Social Behavior  
  Abstract All organisms interact with their environment, and in doing so shape it, modifying resource availability. Termed niche construction, this process has been studied primarily at the ecological level with an emphasis on the consequences of construction across generations. We focus on the behavioural process of construction within a single generation, identifying the role a robustness mechanism--conflict management--has in promoting interactions that build social resource networks or social niches. Using 'knockout' experiments on a large, captive group of pigtailed macaques (Macaca nemestrina), we show that a policing function, performed infrequently by a small subset of individuals, significantly contributes to maintaining stable resource networks in the face of chronic perturbations that arise through conflict. When policing is absent, social niches destabilize, with group members building smaller, less diverse, and less integrated grooming, play, proximity and contact-sitting networks. Instability is quantified in terms of reduced mean degree, increased clustering, reduced reach, and increased assortativity. Policing not only controls conflict, we find it significantly influences the structure of networks that constitute essential social resources in gregarious primate societies. The structure of such networks plays a critical role in infant survivorship, emergence and spread of cooperative behaviour, social learning and cultural traditions.  
  Address Santa Fe Institute, Santa Fe, New Mexico 87501, USA. jflack@santafe.edu  
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  ISSN 1476-4687 ISBN Medium  
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  Notes PMID:16437106 Approved no  
  Call Number refbase @ user @ Serial 298  
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Author Dubois, F.; Giraldeau, L.-A. openurl 
  Title The forager's dilemma: food sharing and food defense as risk-sensitive foraging options Type Journal Article
  Year 2003 Publication The American Naturalist Abbreviated Journal Am Nat  
  Volume 162 Issue 6 Pages 768-779  
  Keywords (down) Animals; Competitive Behavior/*physiology; *Environment; Feeding Behavior/*physiology; *Game Theory; *Models, Biological; Population Density; Population Dynamics  
  Abstract Although many variants of the hawk-dove game predict the frequency at which group foraging animals should compete aggressively, none of them can explain why a large number of group foraging animals share food clumps without any overt aggression. One reason for this shortcoming is that hawk-dove games typically consider only a single contest, while most group foraging situations involve opponents that interact repeatedly over discovered food clumps. The present iterated hawk-dove game predicts that in situations that are analogous to a prisoner's dilemma, animals should share the resources without aggression, provided that the number of simultaneously available food clumps is sufficiently large and the number of competitors is relatively small. However, given that the expected gain of an aggressive animal is more variable than the gain expected by nonaggressive individuals, the predicted effect of the number of food items in a clump-clump richness-depends on whether only the mean or both the mean and variability associated with payoffs are considered. More precisely, the deterministic game predicts that aggression should increase with clump richness, whereas the stochastic risk-sensitive game predicts that the frequency of encounters resulting in aggression should peak at intermediate clump richnesses or decrease with increasing clump richness if animals show sensitivity to the variance or coefficient of variation, respectively.  
  Address Departement des Sciences Biologiques, Universite du Quebec a Montreal, Case postale 8888, Succursale Centre-Ville, Montreal, Quebec H3C 3P8, Canada. fdubois@u-bourgogne.fr  
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  ISSN 0003-0147 ISBN Medium  
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  Notes PMID:14737714 Approved no  
  Call Number Serial 2132  
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Author Gill, J. openurl 
  Title A new method for continuous recording of motor activity in horses Type Journal Article
  Year 1991 Publication Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology. A, Comparative Physiology Abbreviated Journal Comp Biochem Physiol A  
  Volume 99 Issue 3 Pages 333-341  
  Keywords (down) Animals; Circadian Rhythm; Female; Horses/*physiology; Monitoring, Physiologic/instrumentation/*veterinary; *Motor Activity; Signal Processing, Computer-Assisted  
  Abstract 1. The use of an electronic recorder for the horse motor activity was described. 2. Examples of different types of motor activities are given in Figs 1-8. 3. The ultradian pattern of activity in all records was stressed. 4. The possibility of receiving of more physiological informations by this type of apparatus is discussed.  
  Address Department of Vertebrate Animal Physiology, University of Warsaw, Poland  
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  ISSN 0300-9629 ISBN Medium  
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  Notes PMID:1678331 Approved no  
  Call Number refbase @ user @ Serial 1950  
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Author Hampton, R.R. doi  openurl
  Title Rhesus monkeys know when they remember Type Journal Article
  Year 2001 Publication Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America Abbreviated Journal Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.  
  Volume 98 Issue 9 Pages 5359-5362  
  Keywords (down) Animals; Choice Behavior/physiology; Cognition/*physiology; Cues; Food Preferences/psychology; Macaca mulatta/*physiology/*psychology; Male; Memory/*physiology; Probability; Psychological Tests; Reproducibility of Results; Sensitivity and Specificity  
  Abstract Humans are consciously aware of some memories and can make verbal reports about these memories. Other memories cannot be brought to consciousness, even though they influence behavior. This conspicuous difference in access to memories is central in taxonomies of human memory systems but has been difficult to document in animal studies, suggesting that some forms of memory may be unique to humans. Here I show that rhesus macaque monkeys can report the presence or absence of memory. Although it is probably impossible to document subjective, conscious properties of memory in nonverbal animals, this result objectively demonstrates an important functional parallel with human conscious memory. Animals able to discern the presence and absence of memory should improve accuracy if allowed to decline memory tests when they have forgotten, and should decline tests most frequently when memory is attenuated experimentally. One of two monkeys examined unequivocally met these criteria under all test conditions, whereas the second monkey met them in all but one case. Probe tests were used to rule out “cueing” by a wide variety of environmental and behavioral stimuli, leaving detection of the absence of memory per se as the most likely mechanism underlying the monkeys' abilities to selectively decline memory tests when they had forgotten.  
  Address Section on the Neurobiology of Learning and Memory, Laboratory of Neuropsychology, National Institute of Mental Health, Building 49, Room 1B-80, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA. robert@ln.nimh.nih.gov  
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  Series Volume Series Issue Edition  
  ISSN 0027-8424 ISBN Medium  
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  Notes PMID:11274360 Approved no  
  Call Number Equine Behaviour @ team @ Serial 2824  
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