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Bateson, P. (2014). Play, playfulness, creativity and innovation. Anim. Behav. Cogn., 1(2), 99–112.
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Dawson, B. V., & Foss, B. M. (1965). Observational learning in budgerigars. Anim. Behav., 13(4), 470–474.
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Dingemanse, N. J., Both, C., Drent, P. J., van Oers, K., & van Noordwijk, A. J. (2002). Repeatability and heritability of exploratory behaviour in great tits from the wild. Anim. Behav., 64(6), 929–938.
Abstract: We investigated whether individual great tits, Parus major, vary consistently in their exploratory behaviour in a novel environment and measured the repeatability and heritability of this trait. Wild birds were caught in their natural habitat, tested in the laboratory in an open field test on the following morning, then released at the capture site. We measured individual consistency of exploratory behaviour for recaptured individuals (repeatability) and estimated the heritability with parent-offspring regressions and sibling analyses. Measures of exploratory behaviour of individuals at repeated captures were consistent in both sexes and study areas (repeatabilities ranged from 0.27 to 0.48). Exploration scores did not differ between the sexes, and were unrelated to age, condition at fledging or condition during measurement. Heritability estimates were 0.22-0.41 (parent-offspring regressions) and 0.37-0.40 (sibling analyses). We conclude that (1) consistent individual variation in open field behaviour exists in individuals from the wild, and (2) this behavioural variation is heritable. This is one of the first studies showing heritable variation in a behavioural trait in animals from the wild, and poses the question of how this variation is maintained under natural conditions. Copyright 2002 The Association for the Study of Animal Behaviour. Published by Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.
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Bode, N. W. F., Wood, A. J., & Franks, D. W. (2011). The impact of social networks on animal collective motion. Anim. Behav., 82(1), 29–38.
Abstract: Many group-living animals show social preferences for relatives, familiar conspecifics or individuals of similar attributes such as size, personality or sex. How such preferences could affect the collective motion of animal groups has been rather unexplored. We present a general model of collective animal motion that includes social connections as preferential reactions between individuals. Our conceptual examples illustrate the possible impact of underlying social networks on the collective motion of animals. Our approach shows that the structure of these networks could influence: (1) the cohesion of groups; (2) the spatial position of individuals within groups; and (3) the hierarchical dynamics within such groups. We argue that the position of individuals within a social network and the social network structure of populations could have important fitness implications for individual animals. Counterintuitive results from our conceptual examples show that social structures can result in unexpected group dynamics. This sharpens our understanding of the way in which collective movement can be interpreted as a result of social interactions.
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Siniscalchi, M., Sasso, R., Pepe, A. M., Dimatteo, S., Vallortigara, G., & Quaranta, A. (). Sniffing with the right nostril: lateralization of response to odour stimuli by dogs. Anim. Behav., In Press, Corrected Proof.
Abstract: Lateralization in dogs, Canis familiaris, has been reported for paw usage and response to visual and acoustic stimuli. Surprisingly, however, no investigation of possible lateralization for the most relevant sensory domain of dogs, namely olfaction, has been carried out. Here we investigated left and right nostril use in dogs freely sniffing different emotive stimuli in unrestrained conditions. When sniffing novel nonaversive stimuli (food, lemon, vaginal secretion and cotton swab odours), dogs showed initial preferential use of the right nostril and then a shift towards use of the left nostril with repeated stimulus presentation. When sniffing arousal stimuli such as adrenaline and veterinary sweat odorants, dogs showed a consistent right nostril bias all over the series of stimulus presentations. Results suggest initial involvement of the right hemisphere in processing of novel stimuli followed by the left hemisphere taking charge of control of routine behaviour. Sustained right nostril response to arousal stimuli appears to be consistent with the idea that the sympathetic hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis is mainly under the control of the right hemisphere. The implications of these findings for animal welfare are discussed.
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Sanga, U., Provenza, F. D., & Villalba, J. J. (2011). Transmission of self-medicative behaviour from mother to offspring in sheep. Anim. Behav., 82(2), 219–227.
Abstract: Herbivores challenged by diets with high concentrations of tannins learn by individual experience to self-select medicinal compounds such as polyethylene glycol (PEG), which neutralizes the negative postingestive effects of tannins. We investigated the transmission of this acquired self-medicative behaviour from mother to offspring. One group of ewes (experienced, N = 8) was conditioned to associate the beneficial effects of PEG after consuming a tannin-rich diet. Ewes ingested a meal of high-tannin food and were then offered PEG. Subsequently, ewes ingested the same tannin-rich meal and were then offered a food (grape pomace; control) that did not have the medicinal effects of PEG. After conditioning, the experienced group and a naïve group of ewes (N = 8) were given a choice between the high-tannin food, PEG and grape pomace. Experienced ewes showed higher intake and preference for PEG than did naïve ewes (P < 0.05). Subsequently, experienced and naïve ewes with their naïve lambs, as well as a group of naïve lambs without their mothers (N = 8), were exposed to the tannin-rich diet, PEG and grape pomace. Lambs were then tested for their ability to self-medicate with PEG by offering them a choice between the tannin-rich diet, PEG and grape pomace. Lambs from experienced and naïve mothers showed a higher preference for PEG than did lambs exposed without their mothers (P = 0.05). Thus, the presence of the mother (experienced or naïve) was important for naïve lambs to learn about the medicinal benefits of PEG. We conclude that the mother's presence per se may increase the efficiency of creating new knowledge, such as preference for a medicine, within a group, beyond transmitting and maintaining this knowledge across generations.
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Sankey, C., Richard-Yris, M. - A., Leroy, H., Henry, S., & Hausberger, M. (2010). Positive interactions lead to lasting positive memories in horses, Equus caballus. Anim. Behav., 79(4), 869–875.
Abstract: Social relationships are important in social species. These relationships, based on repeated interactions, define each partner's expectations during the following encounters. The creation of a relationship implies high social cognitive abilities which require that each partner is able to associate the positive or negative content of an interaction with a specific partner and to recall this association. In this study, we tested the effects of repeated interactions on the memory kept by 23 young horses about humans, after 6 and 8 months of separation. The association of a reward with a learning task in an interactional context induced positive reactions towards humans during training. It also increased contact and interest, not only just after training, but also several months later, despite no further interaction with humans. In addition, this ‘positive memory’ of humans extended to novel persons. Overall, positive reinforcement enhanced learning and memorization of the task itself. These findings suggest remarkable social cognitive abilities that can be transposed from intraspecific to interspecific social contexts.
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Frank S. A. (1996). Policing and group cohesion when resources vary. Anim. Behav., 52, 1163–1169.
Abstract: The transition from competing individuals to cooperative groups has occurred several times inevolutionary history. The puzzle is why selfish individuals did not subvert cohesive group behaviour bytaking resources without contributing to the group’s overall success. Kin selection and reciprocal altruism are the two standard explanations for group cohesion. But many groups have evolved into
cooperative units when relatedness was low and opportunities were limited for the strategic alliances required for reciprocity. A new theory was recently proposed in which individuals invest some of their resources into repressing competition between group members. Such policing increases the fair distribution of resources in the group and enhances group cohesion. The surprising aspect of this theory
is that low relatedness is more conducive to the spread of policing traits than is high relatedness. Here a new explanation is developed of the biological processes that favour policing. The model is then extended in two ways. First, more realism is added to the theory by accounting for the full range of costs and benefits associated with competitive and cooperative traits within groups. Second, another
surprising result is introduced about cooperative evolution. Small variations in individual vigour or resources can lead to large variations in individual contributions to policing the group. Stronger individuals often invest all of their excess resources into policing, but weaker individuals do not contribute to group cohesion.
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Schneider, G., & Krueger, K. (2012). Third-party interventions keep social partners from exchanging affiliative interactions with others. Anim. Behav., 83(2), 377–387.
Abstract: Third-party interventions are defined as the interruption of dyadic interactions by third animals through direct physical contact, interposing or threats. Previous studies focused on the analysis of interventions against agonistic encounters. However, there have been no evaluations of interventions against affiliative behaviours, particularly in relation to the intervening animal�s social relationships and its social and spatial position. Horses, Equus caballus, are an interesting model species, as interventions against affiliative interactions occur more frequently than against agonistic interactions. In this study, 64 feral horses displayed 67 interventions in affiliative interactions and eight interventions in agonistic interactions within the observation period. We analysed the interventions in affiliative encounters, and found that it was mainly higher-ranking females that intervened in the affiliative interactions of group mates in the stable horse harems. The intervening animals took an active part in affiliative and agonistic encounters within the group, but did not occupy particular social roles or spatial positions. They intervened in affiliative interactions in which group mates with which they had social bonds interacted with other members of the group. They targeted the nonbonded animal and approached the one with which they were socially bonded. We suggest some species use third-party interventions in affiliative interactions to prevent competition for preferred social interaction partners from escalating into more costly agonistic encounters.
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Ventolini, N., Ferrero, E. A., Sponza, S., Della Chiesa, A., Zucca, P., & Vallortigara, G. (2005). Laterality in the wild: preferential hemifield use during predatory and sexual behaviour in the black-winged stilt. Anim. Behav., 69(5), 1077–1084.
Abstract: We recorded preferential use of the left and right monocular visual field in black-winged stilts, Himantopus himantopus, during predatory pecking and during courtship and mating behaviour in a naturalistic setting. The stilts had a population-level preference for using their right monocular visual field before predatory pecking; pecks that followed right-hemifield detection were more likely to be successful than pecks that followed left-hemifield detection, as evinced by the occurrence of swallowing and shaking head movements after pecking. In contrast, shaking behaviour, a component of courtship displays, and copulatory attempts by males were more likely to occur when females were seen with the left monocular visual field. Asymmetric hemifield use observed in natural conditions raises interesting issues as to the costs and benefits of population-level behavioural lateralization in wild animals.
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