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Author Hare, B.; Tomasello, M. doi  openurl
  Title (up) Human-like social skills in dogs? Type Journal Article
  Year 2005 Publication Trends in Cognitive Sciences Abbreviated Journal Trends. Cognit. Sci.  
  Volume 9 Issue 9 Pages 439-444  
  Keywords *Animal Communication; Animals; *Behavior, Animal; Cognition/*physiology; Dogs; *Evolution; Humans; *Social Behavior  
  Abstract Domestic dogs are unusually skilled at reading human social and communicative behavior--even more so than our nearest primate relatives. For example, they use human social and communicative behavior (e.g. a pointing gesture) to find hidden food, and they know what the human can and cannot see in various situations. Recent comparisons between canid species suggest that these unusual social skills have a heritable component and initially evolved during domestication as a result of selection on systems mediating fear and aggression towards humans. Differences in chimpanzee and human temperament suggest that a similar process may have been an important catalyst leading to the evolution of unusual social skills in our own species. The study of convergent evolution provides an exciting opportunity to gain further insights into the evolutionary processes leading to human-like forms of cooperation and communication.  
  Address Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Deutscher Platz 6, Leipzig, Germany. hare@eva.mpg.de  
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  Language English Summary Language Original Title  
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  Series Volume Series Issue Edition  
  ISSN 1364-6613 ISBN Medium  
  Area Expedition Conference  
  Notes PMID:16061417 Approved no  
  Call Number refbase @ user @ Serial 546  
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Author Arnold, K.; Zuberbuhler, K. doi  openurl
  Title (up) Language evolution: semantic combinations in primate calls Type Journal Article
  Year 2006 Publication Nature Abbreviated Journal Nature  
  Volume 441 Issue 7091 Pages 303  
  Keywords Animal Migration; Animals; Eagles/physiology; *Evolution; Female; Haplorhini/*physiology; Male; Predatory Behavior; *Semantics; *Vocalization, Animal  
  Abstract Syntax sets human language apart from other natural communication systems, although its evolutionary origins are obscure. Here we show that free-ranging putty-nosed monkeys combine two vocalizations into different call sequences that are linked to specific external events, such as the presence of a predator and the imminent movement of the group. Our findings indicate that non-human primates can combine calls into higher-order sequences that have a particular meaning.  
  Address School of Psychology, University of St Andrews, St Andrews KY16 9JP, UK  
  Corporate Author Thesis  
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  Language English Summary Language Original Title  
  Series Editor Series Title Abbreviated Series Title  
  Series Volume Series Issue Edition  
  ISSN 1476-4687 ISBN Medium  
  Area Expedition Conference  
  Notes PMID:16710411 Approved no  
  Call Number refbase @ user @ Serial 354  
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Author Wolf, M.; van Doorn, G.S.; Leimar, O.; Weissing, F.J. doi  openurl
  Title (up) Life-history trade-offs favour the evolution of animal personalities Type Journal Article
  Year 2007 Publication Nature Abbreviated Journal Nature  
  Volume 447 Issue 7144 Pages 581-584  
  Keywords Aggression/physiology/psychology; Animals; Behavior, Animal/*physiology; *Evolution; Exploratory Behavior/physiology; Models, Biological; Personality/*physiology; Predatory Behavior/physiology; Reproduction/physiology; Risk-Taking; Selection (Genetics)  
  Abstract In recent years evidence has been accumulating that personalities are not only found in humans but also in a wide range of other animal species. Individuals differ consistently in their behavioural tendencies and the behaviour in one context is correlated with the behaviour in multiple other contexts. From an adaptive perspective, the evolution of animal personalities is still a mystery, because a more flexible structure of behaviour should provide a selective advantage. Accordingly, many researchers view personalities as resulting from constraints imposed by the architecture of behaviour (but see ref. 12). In contrast, we show here that animal personalities can be given an adaptive explanation. Our argument is based on the insight that the trade-off between current and future reproduction often results in polymorphic populations in which some individuals put more emphasis on future fitness returns than others. Life-history theory predicts that such differences in fitness expectations should result in systematic differences in risk-taking behaviour. Individuals with high future expectations (who have much to lose) should be more risk-averse than individuals with low expectations. This applies to all kinds of risky situations, so individuals should consistently differ in their behaviour. By means of an evolutionary model we demonstrate that this basic principle results in the evolution of animal personalities. It simultaneously explains the coexistence of behavioural types, the consistency of behaviour through time and the structure of behavioural correlations across contexts. Moreover, it explains the common finding that explorative behaviour and risk-related traits like boldness and aggressiveness are common characteristics of animal personalities.  
  Address Theoretical Biology Group, Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Studies, University of Groningen, Kerklaan 30, 9751 NN Haren, The Netherlands  
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  Language English Summary Language Original Title  
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  ISSN 1476-4687 ISBN Medium  
  Area Expedition Conference  
  Notes PMID:17538618 Approved no  
  Call Number Equine Behaviour @ team @ Serial 4098  
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Author Dunbar, R.I.M. doi  openurl
  Title (up) Male and female brain evolution is subject to contrasting selection pressures in primates Type Journal Article
  Year 2007 Publication BMC Biology Abbreviated Journal BMC Biol  
  Volume 5 Issue Pages 21  
  Keywords Animals; *Brain/physiology; *Evolution; Female; Humans; Male; *Selection (Genetics); *Sex Characteristics  
  Abstract The claim that differences in brain size across primate species has mainly been driven by the demands of sociality (the “social brain” hypothesis) is now widely accepted. Some of the evidence to support this comes from the fact that species that live in large social groups have larger brains, and in particular larger neocortices. Lindenfors and colleagues (BMC Biology 5:20) add significantly to our appreciation of this process by showing that there are striking differences between the two sexes in the social mechanisms and brain units involved. Female sociality (which is more affiliative) is related most closely to neocortex volume, but male sociality (which is more competitive and combative) is more closely related to subcortical units (notably those associated with emotional responses). Thus different brain units have responded to different selection pressures.  
  Address British Academy Centenary Research Project, School of Biological Sciences, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK. rimd@liv.ac.uk  
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  Language English Summary Language Original Title  
  Series Editor Series Title Abbreviated Series Title  
  Series Volume Series Issue Edition  
  ISSN 1741-7007 ISBN Medium  
  Area Expedition Conference  
  Notes PMID:17493267 Approved no  
  Call Number Serial 2100  
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Author Jansen, T.; Forster, P.; Levine, M.A.; Oelke, H.; Hurles, M.; Renfrew, C.; Weber, J.; Olek, K. doi  openurl
  Title (up) Mitochondrial DNA and the origins of the domestic horse Type Journal Article
  Year 2002 Publication Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America Abbreviated Journal Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.  
  Volume 99 Issue 16 Pages 10905-10910  
  Keywords Animals; Animals, Domestic/classification/*genetics; Base Sequence; DNA, Complementary; *DNA, Mitochondrial; *Evolution, Molecular; Horses/classification/*genetics; Molecular Sequence Data; Phylogeny  
  Abstract The place and date of the domestication of the horse has long been a matter for debate among archaeologists. To determine whether horses were domesticated from one or several ancestral horse populations, we sequenced the mitochondrial D-loop for 318 horses from 25 oriental and European breeds, including American mustangs. Adding these sequences to previously published data, the total comes to 652, the largest currently available database. From these sequences, a phylogenetic network was constructed that showed that most of the 93 different mitochondrial (mt)DNA types grouped into 17 distinct phylogenetic clusters. Several of the clusters correspond to breeds and/or geographic areas, notably cluster A2, which is specific to Przewalski's horses, cluster C1, which is distinctive for northern European ponies, and cluster D1, which is well represented in Iberian and northwest African breeds. A consideration of the horse mtDNA mutation rate together with the archaeological timeframe for domestication requires at least 77 successfully breeding mares recruited from the wild. The extensive genetic diversity of these 77 ancestral mares leads us to conclude that several distinct horse populations were involved in the domestication of the horse.  
  Address Biopsytec Analytik GmbH, Marie-Curie-Strasse 1, 53359 Rheinbach, Germany. jansen@biopsytec.com  
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  Series Editor Series Title Abbreviated Series Title  
  Series Volume Series Issue Edition  
  ISSN 0027-8424 ISBN Medium  
  Area Expedition Conference  
  Notes PMID:12130666 Approved no  
  Call Number refbase @ user @ Serial 772  
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Author Scheffer, M.; van Nes, E.H. doi  openurl
  Title (up) Self-organized similarity, the evolutionary emergence of groups of similar species Type Journal Article
  Year 2006 Publication Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America Abbreviated Journal Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.  
  Volume 103 Issue 16 Pages 6230-6235  
  Keywords Animals; *Competitive Behavior; *Ecosystem; *Evolution; *Models, Biological  
  Abstract Ecologists have long been puzzled by the fact that there are so many similar species in nature. Here we show that self-organized clusters of look-a-likes may emerge spontaneously from coevolution of competitors. The explanation is that there are two alternative ways to survive together: being sufficiently different or being sufficiently similar. Using a model based on classical competition theory, we demonstrate a tendency for evolutionary emergence of regularly spaced lumps of similar species along a niche axis. Indeed, such lumpy patterns are commonly observed in size distributions of organisms ranging from algae, zooplankton, and beetles to birds and mammals, and could not be well explained by earlier theory. Our results suggest that these patterns may represent self-constructed niches emerging from competitive interactions. A corollary of our findings is that, whereas in species-poor communities sympatric speciation and invasion of open niches is possible, species-saturated communities may be characterized by convergent evolution and invasion by look-a-likes.  
  Address Aquatic Ecology and Water Quality Management Group, Department of Environmental Sciences, Wageningen University, P.O. Box 8080, 6700 DD, Wageningen, The Netherlands. marten.scheffer@wur.nl  
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  ISSN 0027-8424 ISBN Medium  
  Area Expedition Conference  
  Notes PMID:16585519 Approved no  
  Call Number refbase @ user @ Serial 510  
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Author Bergstrom, C.T.; Lachmann, M. openurl 
  Title (up) Signaling among relatives. III. Talk is cheap Type Journal Article
  Year 1998 Publication Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America Abbreviated Journal Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.  
  Volume 95 Issue 9 Pages 5100-5105  
  Keywords Animal Communication; Animals; Costs and Cost Analysis; *Evolution; Interpersonal Relations; Models, Biological  
  Abstract The Sir Philip Sidney game has been used by numerous authors to show how signal cost can facilitate honest signaling among relatives. Here, we demonstrate that, in this game, honest cost-free signals are possible as well, under very general conditions. Moreover, these cost-free signals are better for all participants than the previously explored alternatives. Recent empirical evidence suggests that begging is energetically inexpensive for nestling birds; this finding led some researchers to question the applicability of the costly signaling framework to nestling begging. Our results show that cost-free or inexpensive signals, as observed empirically, fall within the framework of signaling theory.  
  Address Department of Biological Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA. carl@charles.stanford.edu  
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  ISSN 0027-8424 ISBN Medium  
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  Notes PMID:9560235 Approved no  
  Call Number refbase @ user @ Serial 561  
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Author Hare, B.; Plyusnina, I.; Ignacio, N.; Schepina, O.; Stepika, A.; Wrangham, R.; Trut, L. doi  openurl
  Title (up) Social cognitive evolution in captive foxes is a correlated by-product of experimental domestication Type Journal Article
  Year 2005 Publication Current biology : CB Abbreviated Journal Curr Biol  
  Volume 15 Issue 3 Pages 226-230  
  Keywords Animals; *Animals, Domestic; Cognition/*physiology; *Cues; *Evolution; Foxes/*physiology; *Selection (Genetics); Social Behavior; Species Specificity  
  Abstract Dogs have an unusual ability for reading human communicative gestures (e.g., pointing) in comparison to either nonhuman primates (including chimpanzees) or wolves . Although this unusual communicative ability seems to have evolved during domestication , it is unclear whether this evolution occurred as a result of direct selection for this ability, as previously hypothesized , or as a correlated by-product of selection against fear and aggression toward humans--as is the case with a number of morphological and physiological changes associated with domestication . We show here that fox kits from an experimental population selectively bred over 45 years to approach humans fearlessly and nonaggressively (i.e., experimentally domesticated) are not only as skillful as dog puppies in using human gestures but are also more skilled than fox kits from a second, control population not bred for tame behavior (critically, neither population of foxes was ever bred or tested for their ability to use human gestures) . These results suggest that sociocognitive evolution has occurred in the experimental foxes, and possibly domestic dogs, as a correlated by-product of selection on systems mediating fear and aggression, and it is likely the observed social cognitive evolution did not require direct selection for improved social cognitive ability.  
  Address Department of Anthropology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA. hare@eva.mpg.de  
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  Series Volume Series Issue Edition  
  ISSN 0960-9822 ISBN Medium  
  Area Expedition Conference  
  Notes PMID:15694305 Approved no  
  Call Number refbase @ user @ Serial 594  
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Author Vallortigara, G.; Rogers, L.J. url  doi
openurl 
  Title (up) Survival with an asymmetrical brain: advantages and disadvantages of cerebral lateralization Type Journal Article
  Year 2005 Publication The Behavioral and Brain Sciences Abbreviated Journal Behav Brain Sci  
  Volume 28 Issue 4 Pages 575-89; discussion 589-633  
  Keywords Animals; Attention/*physiology; Behavior/*physiology; Behavior, Animal/*physiology; Dominance, Cerebral/*physiology; *Evolution; Humans; Models, Biological; Visual Perception/physiology  
  Abstract Recent evidence in natural and semi-natural settings has revealed a variety of left-right perceptual asymmetries among vertebrates. These include preferential use of the left or right visual hemifield during activities such as searching for food, agonistic responses, or escape from predators in animals as different as fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals. There are obvious disadvantages in showing such directional asymmetries because relevant stimuli may be located to the animal's left or right at random; there is no a priori association between the meaning of a stimulus (e.g., its being a predator or a food item) and its being located to the animal's left or right. Moreover, other organisms (e.g., predators) could exploit the predictability of behavior that arises from population-level lateral biases. It might be argued that lateralization of function enhances cognitive capacity and efficiency of the brain, thus counteracting the ecological disadvantages of lateral biases in behavior. However, such an increase in brain efficiency could be obtained by each individual being lateralized without any need to align the direction of the asymmetry in the majority of the individuals of the population. Here we argue that the alignment of the direction of behavioral asymmetries at the population level arises as an “evolutionarily stable strategy” under “social” pressures occurring when individually asymmetrical organisms must coordinate their behavior with the behavior of other asymmetrical organisms of the same or different species.  
  Address Department of Psychology and B.R.A.I.N. Centre for Neuroscience, University of Trieste, 34123 Trieste, Italy. vallorti@univ.trieste.it  
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  Series Volume Series Issue Edition  
  ISSN 0140-525X ISBN Medium  
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  Notes PMID:16209828 Approved no  
  Call Number Equine Behaviour @ team @ Serial 4622  
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Author Nettle, D. doi  openurl
  Title (up) The evolution of personality variation in humans and other animals Type Journal Article
  Year 2006 Publication The American Psychologist Abbreviated Journal Am Psychol  
  Volume 61 Issue 6 Pages 622-631  
  Keywords Animals; Birds; *Evolution; Female; Fishes; Humans; Insects; Male; Personality/*genetics/*physiology  
  Abstract A comprehensive evolutionary framework for understanding the maintenance of heritable behavioral variation in humans is yet to be developed. Some evolutionary psychologists have argued that heritable variation will not be found in important, fitness-relevant characteristics because of the winnowing effect of natural selection. This article propounds the opposite view. Heritable variation is ubiquitous in all species, and there are a number of frameworks for understanding its persistence. The author argues that each of the Big Five dimensions of human personality can be seen as the result of a trade-off between different fitness costs and benefits. As there is no unconditionally optimal value of these trade-offs, it is to be expected that genetic diversity will be retained in the population.  
  Address University of Newcastle, Newcastle, United Kingdom. daniel.nettle@ncl.ac.uk  
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  Series Volume Series Issue Edition  
  ISSN 0003-066X ISBN Medium  
  Area Expedition Conference  
  Notes PMID:16953749 Approved no  
  Call Number Equine Behaviour @ team @ Serial 4105  
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