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Author VanDierendonck, M.C., de Vries, H., Schilder, M.B.H. url  doi
openurl 
  Title (up) An Analysis of Dominance, Its Behavioural Parameters and Possible Determinants in a Herd of Icelandic horses in captivity Type Journal Article
  Year 1995 Publication Netherlands Journal of Zoology Abbreviated Journal Netherl. J. Zool.  
  Volume 45 Issue 3-4 Pages 362-385  
  Keywords Dominance; rank order; horses; Icelandic horses.  
  Abstract Feral horses are social animals, which have to rely on survival strategies centered on the formation of cohesive social bonds within their bands. Many problems in the husbandry of social animals such as horses, are due to the fact that the limits of their adaptive abilities are exceeded. Evidence suggests that the fundamental social characteristics of domestic horses have remained relatively unchanged. The social structure, social strategies and social interactions were investigated (3 non-consecutive years, 24 hr per day for several weeks) in long term established groups of domestic horses (mares and geldings of all ages) and a few small introduced groups, kept in (semi)natural environments. The general aim was to investigate the social needs of domestic horses. The social life of domestic horses was characterised by long lasting bonds with preferred partners which were established and maintained by allogrooming, play, proximity and dominance behaviours. Bonding partners were mainly found within the same sex-age group, but adult geldings also bonded with sub-adult mares and geldings. Adult mares were clustered in a group, while the other animals formed a second group. Among the adult mares, subgroups according to reproductive state were formed. Individuals regulated their social network by interfering with interactions between other members of the herd, which in itself is complex. An intervention is a behavioural action of one animal that actively interferes with an ongoing interaction between a dyad with the apparent aim of altering that interaction. This was verified by post-hoc analyses of disturbed and undisturbed interactions. Interventions in allogrooming or play were performed significantly more often when at least one member of the initial dyad was a preferred partner of, or familiar to (within the small introduced bands) the intervener. The stronger the preferred association in allogrooming between the intervener and member(s) of the initial dyad, the higher the probability the intervener would displace one initial member and continue allogrooming with the other. Just five behaviours were extracted which reliably reflected the dominance relations among horses. Aggression with the hind quarters was used both offensively and defensively and therefore not suitable as a reliable parameter. Individual dominance relationships were related to social experience. The implications of these findings for horse husbandry were assessed. It is argued that the execution of affiliative behaviours may be rewarding in itself, and therefore always will be a highly motivated behaviour. It is shown that social positive physical interactions (allogrooming, play) with other horses is an ethological need and therefore indispensable in modern husbandry systems. Ethological needs are so important for the animal that husbandry systems that lack the possibilities to execute such behaviours will cause chronic stress. It is concluded that all horses need physical social contact, and that horses, which lack appropriate social learning experiences during ontogeny, may be hampered in their social functioning later in life. Solutions for problems, including dominance problems, in individual social housing and group housing are presented.  
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  Notes Approved no  
  Call Number Equine Behaviour @ team @ Serial 2368  
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Author VanDierendonck, M.C.; de Vries, H.; Schilder, M.B.H. url  openurl
  Title (up) An Analysis of Dominance, Its Behavioural Parameters and Possible Determinants in a Herd of Icelandic orses in Captivity Type Journal Article
  Year 1995 Publication Netherlands Journal of Zoology Abbreviated Journal Netherl. J. Zool.  
  Volume 45 Issue 3-4 Pages 362-385  
  Keywords Dominance; rank order; horses; Icelandic horses.  
  Abstract Th e applicability of the concept of dominance was investigated in a captive herd of  Icelandic

horses and  ponies of diff erent breeds. Eight out of  behaviours possibly related

to dominance occurred frequently enough to be investigated in detail. For these eight agonistic

behaviours the coverage, the unidirectionality in the exchange, and the degree of

transitivity (Landau`s linearity index) were calculated. Four off ensive behaviours, together

with avoidance, were suitable for further analysis with regard to dominance. Th e patterns

of asymmetries with which these behaviours were exchanged were suffi ciently similar as to

justify the application of the dominance concept and to construct a (nearly) linear dominance

hierarchy. Th e rank order of the castrated stallions was completely linear, the hierarchy

of the mares was almost completely linear. Th e results suggest that off ensive and defensive

aggressive behaviours should be treated separately and that the concept of dominance

is applicable. However, ritualized formal dominance signals between adult horses appear to

be (almost) absent. Th e rank positions of the individuals were correlated with age and residency

in the herd but not with height. Middle ranking horses tended to be more frequently

in the close vicinity of another horse than high ranking or low ranking horses. Over and

above this correlation at the individual level, it was found that pairs of horses close in rank

to each other were more often also spatially close to each other. Being in oestrus did not infl

uence the dominance relationships between mares. For castrated stallions the rank positions

were correlated with the age at which they were castrated. Th is suggests that in male

horses experience prior to neutering infl uences the behaviour afterwards.
 
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  Language English Summary Language Original Title  
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  Area Expedition Conference  
  Notes Approved no  
  Call Number refbase @ user @ Serial 440  
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Author Healy, S.D.; Jones, C.M. url  doi
openurl 
  Title (up) Animal learning and memory: an integration of cognition and ecology Type Journal Article
  Year 2002 Publication Zoology Abbreviated Journal Zoology  
  Volume 105 Issue 4 Pages 321-327  
  Keywords cognitive ecology; spatial learning and memory; adaptive specialisation  
  Abstract Summary A wonderfully lucid framework for the ways to understand animal behaviour is that represented by the four [`]whys' proposed by Tinbergen (1963). For much of the past three decades, however, these four avenues have been pursued more or less in parallel. Functional questions, for example, have been addressed by behavioural ecologists, mechanistic questions by psychologists and ethologists, ontogenetic questions by developmental biologists and neuroscientists and phylogenetic questions by evolutionary biologists. More recently, the value of integration between these differing views has become apparent. In this brief review, we concentrate especially on current attempts to integrate mechanistic and functional approaches. Most of our understanding of learning and memory in animals comes from the psychological literature, which tends to use only rats or pigeons, and more occasionally primates, as subjects. The underlying psychological assumption is of general processes that are similar across species and contexts rather than a range of specific abilities. However, this does not seem to be entirely true as several learned behaviours have been described that are specific to particular species or contexts. The first conspicuous exception to the generalist assumption was the demonstration of long delay taste aversion learning in rats (Garcia et al., 1955), in which it was shown that a stimulus need not be temporally contiguous with a response for the animal to make an association between food and illness. Subsequently, a number of other examples, such as imprinting and song learning in birds (e.g., Bolhuis and Honey, 1998; Catchpole and Slater, 1995; Horn, 1998), have been thoroughly researched. Even in these cases, however, it has been typical for only a few species to be studied (domestic chicks provide the [`]model' imprinting species and canaries and zebra finches the song learning [`]models'). As a result, a great deal is understood about the neural underpinnings and development of the behaviour, but substantially less is understood about interspecific variation and whether variation in behaviour is correlated with variation in neural processing (see review by Tramontin and Brenowitz, 2000 but see ten Cate and Vos, 1999).  
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  Series Editor Series Title Abbreviated Series Title  
  Series Volume Series Issue Edition  
  ISSN 0944-2006 ISBN Medium  
  Area Expedition Conference  
  Notes Approved no  
  Call Number Equine Behaviour @ team @ Serial 4741  
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Author Mace, G.M.; Harvey, P.H.; Clutton-Brock, T.H. doi  openurl
  Title (up) Brain size and ecology in small mammals Type Journal Article
  Year 1981 Publication Journal of Zoology Abbreviated Journal J Zool  
  Volume 193 Issue 3 Pages 333-354  
  Keywords  
  Abstract Relative brain size (measured as gross brain size after body size effects are removed) differs systematically between families of rodents, insectivores and lagomorphs. The Sciuridae have the largest relative brain size, the Soricidae and Bathyergidae the smallest. These results are discussed and compared with previous analyses of relative brain sizes among primates and bats. These differences complicate comparisons between relative brain size across phylogenetically diverse species and attempts to relate differences in relative brain size to ecological variables. To overcome these problems, best fit relationships were estimated for each family, and values for each genus were expressed as deviations from the lines of best fit. We refer to these values as Comparative Brain Size (CBS). Differences in CBS are related to differences in habitat type (forest-dwelling genera have larger CBS' than grassland forms), in diet (folivores have smaller CBS' than generalists or insectivores, frugivores and granivores), in zonation (arboreal genera have larger CBS' than terrestrial ones) and in activity timing (nocturnal genera have larger CBS' than dirurnal ones). However, these ecological categories are interrelated and, when the effects of other ecological differences are taken into account using analyses of variance, only the differences associated with diet, and possibly habitat remain.  
  Address  
  Corporate Author Thesis  
  Publisher Blackwell Publishing Ltd Place of Publication Editor  
  Language Summary Language Original Title  
  Series Editor Series Title Abbreviated Series Title  
  Series Volume Series Issue Edition  
  ISSN 1469-7998 ISBN Medium  
  Area Expedition Conference  
  Notes Approved no  
  Call Number Equine Behaviour @ team @ Serial 5455  
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Author Geisbauer, G.; Griebel, U.; Schmid, A.; Timney, B url  doi
openurl 
  Title (up) Brightness discrimination and neutral point Type Journal Article
  Year 2004 Publication Canadian Journal of Zoology Abbreviated Journal Can. J. Zool  
  Volume 82 Issue 4 Pages 660-670  
  Keywords  
  Abstract Abstract: Equine brightness discrimination ability and color discrimination were measured using a two-choice discrimination

task. Two Haflinger horses (Equus caballus L., 1758) were trained to discriminate 30 different shades of grey

varying from low to high relative brightness. Their ability to distinguish shades of grey was poor, with calculated

Weber fractions of 0.42 and 0.45. In addition, a “neutral point” test to determine the dimensionality of color vision

was carried out. Three hues of blue-green were tested versus a range of grey targets with brightnesses similar to those

of the blue-green targets. A neutral point was found at about 480 nm. Thus, we can conclude that horses possess

dichromatic color vision.
 
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  Notes Approved no  
  Call Number Equine Behaviour @ team @ Serial 3649  
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Author Hogan, J. doi  openurl
  Title (up) Causation: the study of behavioural mechanisms Type Journal Article
  Year 2005 Publication Animal Biology (formerly Netherlands Journal of Zoology) Abbreviated Journal  
  Volume 55 Issue 4 Pages 323-341  
  Keywords  
  Abstract This paper describes current work on the causal analysis of behaviour systems. It is noted that while causal work investigating the neural, hormonal, and genetic bases of behaviour is flourishing, work being conducted at a strictly behavioural level of analysis has declined greatly over the past 40 years. Nonetheless, most recent research on animal cognition and applied ethology is still being carried out at a behavioural level of analysis and examples of both types of research are presented: memory mechanisms of food-storing birds and decisions of spider-eating jumping spiders, as well as feather pecking in fowl and animal welfare issues, are all briefly discussed. Finally, I discuss the similarities between neural network modelling and early ethological models of motivation, and then show how a modern version of Lorenz's model of motivation can account for current research findings on dustbathing in chickens and sleep in humans. I conclude that valuable information can still be obtained by research at a behavioural level of analysis.  
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  Notes Approved no  
  Call Number Equine Behaviour @ team @ Serial 3134  
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Author Klingel, H. openurl 
  Title (up) Das Verhalten der Pferde (Equidae) Type Journal Article
  Year Publication Handbook of Zoology Abbreviated Journal Handb. o. Zool.  
  Volume 8 Issue 10 Pages 1-68  
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  Abstract  
  Address  
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  Publisher Walter De Gruyter Place of Publication Berlin/Newyork Editor  
  Language German English Summary Language Original Title  
  Series Editor Series Title Abbreviated Series Title  
  Series Volume Series Issue Edition  
  ISSN ISBN Medium  
  Area Expedition Conference  
  Notes Approved no  
  Call Number refbase @ user @ Serial 473  
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Author Smuts, M.M.S.; Penzhorn, B. L. openurl 
  Title (up) Descriptions of antomical differences between skulls and mandibles of Equus zebra and E. burchelli from southern Africa Type Journal Article
  Year 1988 Publication South African Journal of Zoology Abbreviated Journal South African Journal of Zoology  
  Volume 23 Issue (4)3 Pages 328-336  
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  Notes from Professor Hans Klingels Equine Reference List Approved yes  
  Call Number Serial 1617  
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Author Kaiser, S.; Hennessy, M.B.; Sachser, N. doi  openurl
  Title (up) Domestication affects the structure, development and stability of biobehavioural profiles Type Journal Article
  Year 2015 Publication Frontiers in Zoology Abbreviated Journal  
  Volume 12 Issue 1 Pages 1-11  
  Keywords  
  Abstract Domestication is an evolutionary process during which the biobehavioural profile (comprising e.g. social and emotional behaviour, cognitive abilities, as well as hormonal stress responses) is substantially reshaped. Using a comparative approach, and focusing mainly on the domestic and wild guinea pig, an established model system for the study of domestication, we review (a) how wild and domestic animals of the same species differ in behaviour, emotion, cognition, and hormonal stress responses, (b) during which phases of life differences in biobehavioural profiles emerge and (c) whether or not animal personalities exist in both the wild and domestic form. Concerning (a), typical changes with domestication include increased courtship, sociopositive and maternal behaviours as well as decreased aggression and attentive behaviour. In addition, domestic animals display more anxiety-like and less risk-taking and exploratory behaviour than the wild form and they show distinctly lower endocrine stress responsiveness. There are no indications, however, that domestic animals have diminished cognitive abilities relative to the wild form. The different biobehavioural profiles of the wild and domestic animals can be regarded as adaptations to the different environmental conditions under which they live, i.e., the natural habitat and artificial man-made housing conditions, respectively. Concerning (b), the comparison of infantile, adolescent and adult wild and domestic guinea pigs shows that the typical biobehavioural profile of the domestic form is already present during early phases of life, that is, during early adolescence and weaning. Thus, differences between the domestic and the wild form can be attributed to genetic alterations resulting from artificial selection, and likely to environmental influences during the pre- and perinatal phase. Interestingly, the frequency of play behaviour does not differ between the domestic and wild form early in life, but is significantly higher in domesticated guinea pigs at later ages. Concerning (c), there is some evidence that personalities occur in both wild and domestic animals. However, there may be differences in which behavioural domains – social and sexual behaviour, emotionality, stress-responsiveness – are consistent over time. These differences are probably due to changing selection pressures during domestication.  
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  Series Volume Series Issue Edition  
  ISSN 1742-9994 ISBN Medium  
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  Notes Approved no  
  Call Number Equine Behaviour @ team @ Kaiser2015 Serial 5975  
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Author Alexander, R, MCN et al doi  openurl
  Title (up) Fast locomotion of some african ungulates Type Journal Article
  Year 1977 Publication Journal of Zoology Abbreviated Journal J Zool  
  Volume 183 Issue 3 Pages 291-300  
  Keywords  
  Abstract ABSTRACT

Ten species of ungulate were filmed, galloping in their natural habitat. They ranged in size from Thomson's gazelle (about 20 kg) to giraffe (about 1000 kg). They were pursued to make them run as fast as possible. The films have been analysed to determine speed, stride frequency, stride and step lengths, and duty factors. The dependence of these quantities on body size is discussed.



Summary:

Fast locomotion of zebra, giraffe, warthog and seven species of Bovidae has been studied. The animals were filmed from a pursuing vehicle while galloping in their natural habitat.

Stride frequency was more closely correlated with limb length (represented by hip height) than with body mass. Mean stride frequency was proportional to (hip height)-0·51 and maximum stride frequency to (hip height) -0·63.

Maximum speed was between 10 and 14 m s -1 for all species except buffalo (7 m s -1). It was not significantly correlated with body mass.

Since the small species ran at least as fast as the large ones they attained higher Froude numbers. Relative stride length was approximately 1·8 (Froude number)0·39 for all species, irrespective of size. Relative step length was approximately 0·65 (Froude number)0·2, both for the fore feet and for the hind ones. The vertical forces exerted by the feet are proportional to (body weight)×(Froude number)0·2 so the forces at maximum speed are larger multiples of body weight for small species than for large ones.
 
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  Area Expedition Conference  
  Notes from Prof. Hans Klingels Equine Reference List Approved no  
  Call Number refbase @ user @ Serial 130  
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