Custance, D., Whiten, A., & Fredman, T. (1999). Social learning of an artificial fruit task in capuchin monkeys (Cebus apella). J. Comp. Psychol., 113(1), 13–23.
Abstract: Social learning in 11 human-raised capuchin monkeys (Cebus apella) was investigated using an artificial fruit that was designed as an analogue of natural foraging problems faced by primates. Each subject observed a human model open each of 3 principal components on the fruit in 1 of 2 alternative ways (“morphs”). The capuchin monkeys reproduced, to differing extents, the alternative techniques used for opening 1 component of the task (poking vs. pulling while twisting out a pair of smooth plastic bolts) but not the other 2. From the subjects' actions on the bolt latch, independent coders could recognize which morph they had witnessed, and they observed a degree of matching to the demonstrator's act consistent with simple imitation or object movement reenactment (A learns from watching B how an object, or parts of an object, move). Thus, these capuchins were capable of more complex social learning than has been recently ascribed to monkeys. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved)
|
Sato, S. (1984). Social licking pattern and its relationships to social dominance and live weight gain in weaned calves. Appl. Anim. Behav. Sci., 12(1), 25–32.
Abstract: Social licking patterns of heifer and steer herds were observed and recorded during periods of resting and intermittent feeding. The results revealed the following features: (1) heifers and steers had 15.0 and 15.2 social licking interactions per hour which lasted for 37.8 and 41.0 s on average, respectively. The average time an animal spent licking was about 25 s per hour; (2) all the animals in the herds were licked by others, but only 72.3% of the animals licked other animals; (3) the animals close in the social hierarchy tended to lick each other for a longer time than did remote animals; (4) the time receiving l licking and weight gain tended to be positively correlated. The observations suggest that (1) the motivation of giving licking may be individual-specific and may be influenced by genetic factors, while that of receiving licking appears to be general, and that (2) social licking may mean not only cleaning the skin and hair of a passive partner, but also leading it to psychological stability.
|
Sato, S., Sako, S., & Maeda, A. (1991). Social licking patterns in cattle (<em>Bos taurus</em>): influence of environmental and social factors. Applied Animal Behaviour Science, 32(1), 3–12.
Abstract: To investigate the functions of social licking in cattle, four calves (one heifer and one steer in each of two herds), known to exhibit frequent social licking were observed continuously for 2 h before sunset for 13 days, using the focal animal sampling method. Calves were observed under various environmental conditions. Social licking significantly decreased on rainy days and tended to increase in a dirty barn and when food was restricted. Solicitation for social licking occurred not only from dominant animals of pairs but also from subordinates. Of the licking interactions, 31% occurred following solicitation, and these accounted for 39% of the total time spent licking. Following solicitation, 78% of social licking was oriented to the head and the neck regions that were inaccessible to self-licking animals. Unsolicited licking, however, was oriented not only to the head and the neck but also to the back and the rump regions, and these two latter regions were the major ones to receive licking. The effect of social relationships on social licking was investigated using least-squares analysis of variance. Social factors investigated were the difference of dominance values, the dominance-subordinance relationship, and kinship and familiarity; the sex of calves involved was also considered. Only familiarity had a significant effect on licking; exchanges of social licking increased with length of cohabitation. We suggest that social licking may have a cleaning effect, a tension-reducing effect and a bonding effect.
|
|
Hoppitt, W., & Laland, K. N. (2008). Social processes influencing learning in animals: a review of the evidence. Adv Study Behav, 38, 105–165.
|
|
van de Waal, E., & Bshary, R. (2011). Social-learning abilities of wild vervet monkeys in a two-step task artificial fruit experiment. Anim Behav, 81.
|
Myslajek, R. W., Tracz, M., Tracz, M., Tomczak, P., Szewczyk, M., Niedzwiecka, N., et al. (2018). Spatial organization in wolves Canis lupus recolonizing north-west Poland: Large territories at low population density. Mamm. Biol., 92, 37–44.
Abstract: Monitoring of the wolf Canis lupus is a demanding task as it lives in low densities, utilizes vast home ranges and disperses over large areas. These factors make obtaining accurate data about population parameters over the whole distribution area of the species impossible. Thus detailed local studies on socio-spatial organization are essential to calibrate information obtained over a larger area. We applied GPS/GSM telemetry, non-invasive genetic sampling, year-round tracking, camera trapping and howling stimulations to determine the number of family groups, population density and home-range sizes of wolves in the Drawa Forest (DF, western Poland, 2500 km2), an area recently recolonized by the species. Home ranges of three collared male wolves ranged from 321.8 to 420.6 km2 (MCP 100%) and from 187.5 to 277.5 km2 (Kernel 95%), but core areas had a size of 30.5-84.7 km2 (MCP50%) and 35.0-88.8 km2 (Kernel 50%). Mean near neighbour distance between centres of 6 tracked pack homesites was 15.3 km. The number of wolves in DF increased from 14 individuals in 2013/2014 to 30 in 2016/2017. The annual rate of increase varied from 43% in 2014/2015 to 7% in the final year. Population density for the whole study area was relatively low (1.2 indiv./100 km2 in 2016/2017), but densities within territories of two packs studied with telemetry were 1.9 and 1.5 indiv./100 km2. Mean pack size varied between 3.5 and 5.6 individuals, with the largest pack comprising 8 wolves. Mean number of pups observed in summers (June-August) was 4.5. Differences in home range sizes between wolves in western and eastern Poland indicate that results of regional studies cannot be freely extrapolated despite close genetic relationships. Thus, decisions related to management of wolf habitats should be based on intensive local studies.
|
Crowell-Davis, S. L. (1986). Spatial relations between mares and foals of the Welsh pony (Equus caballus). Anim Beh, 34(4), 1007–1015.
Abstract: Welsh pony mares and foals (Equus caballus) were usually found to be within 1 or 5 m of each other during the first week of the foal's life and gradually spent more time at greater distances as the foals became older. There was an overall levelling of the trend during the 9th-15th weeks of life of the foal, followed by a second period of change during weeks 16-24. Through weeks 21-24, mares and foals spent at least half of their time within 5 m of each other. Proximity was primarily due to foal activity except during foal recumbency. During the first 8 weeks of the foal's life, a mare remained close by when it was recumbent, either by grazing in a circle around it or by standing upright beside it. Mares and foals were most likely to be close together when they were resting upright with the other ponies in the herd and most likely to be far apart when the foal was playing. Similarities in patterns of spatial relationship between the foals of a given mare were demonstrated. There was no difference between colts and filies in the development of independence.
|
Maury, M., Murphy, K., Kumar, S., Mauerer, A., & Lee, G. (2005). Spray-drying of proteins: effects of sorbitol and trehalose on aggregation and FT-IR amide I spectrum of an immunoglobulin G. Eur. J. Pharm. Biopharm., 59(2), 251–261.
Abstract: An immunoglobulin G (IgG) was spray-dried on a Büchi 190 laboratory spray-dryer at inlet and outlet air temperatures of 130 and 190°C, respectively. The IgG solution contains initially 115mg/ml IgG plus 50mg/ml sorbitol. After dialysis, at least 80% of low molecular weight component was removed. After spray-drying the dialyzed IgG and immediate redissolution of the powder, an increase in aggregates from 1 to 17% occurred. A major shift towards increase β-sheet structure was detected in the spray-dried solid, which, however, reverted to native structure on redissolution of the powder. A correlation between aggregation determined by size exclusion chromatography and alterations in secondary structure determined by Fourier transformation infra-red spectroscopy could not therefore be established. On spray-drying a non-dialyzed, sorbitol-containing IgG only some 0.7% aggregates were formed. The sorbitol is therefore evidently able to stabilize partially the IgG during the process of spray-drying. Addition of trehalose to the liquid feed produced quantitatively the same stabilizing action on the IgG during spray-drying as did the sorbitol. This finding again points towards a water replacement stabilization mechanism. The IgG spray-dried powder prepared from the dialyzed liquid feed showed continued substantial aggregation on dry storage at 25°C. This was substantially less in the non-dialyzed, sorbitol-containing spray-dried powder. Addition of trehalose to both dialyzed and non-dialyzed system produced substantial improvement in storage stability and reduction in aggregate formation in storage. The quantitative stabilizing effect of the trehalose was only slightly higher than that of the sorbitol. Taken together, these results indicate that both the sorbitol and trehalose stabilize the IgG primarily by a water replacement mechanism rather than by glassy immobilization. The relevance of this work is its questioning of the importance of the usually considered dominance of glassy stabilization of protein in dried systems of high glass transition temperature, such as trehalose. The low glass transition temperature sorbitol produces almost equal process and storage stability in this case.
|
|
Ripple, W. J., Estes, J. A., Beschta, R. L., Wilmers, C. C., Ritchie, E. G., & Hebblewhite, M. (2014). Status and ecological effects of the world's largest carnivores. Science, 343.
|
Palme, R., Touma, C., Arias, N., Dominchin, M.N., & Lepschy, M. (2013). Steroid extraction: Get the best out of faecal samples. Wien Tierärztl Monat – Vet Med Austria, 100, 238–246.
Abstract: Faecal steroid hormone metabolites are becoming increasingly popular as parameters for reproductive functions and stress. The extraction of the steroids from the faecal matrix represents the initial step before quantification can be performed. The steroid metabolites present in the faecal matrix are of varying polarity and composition, so selection of a proper extraction procedure is essential. There have been some studies to address this complex but often neglected point. Radiolabelled steroids (e.g. cortisol or progesterone) have frequently been added to faecal samples to estimate the efficiency of the extraction procedures used. However, native, unmetabolized steroids are normally not present in the faeces and therefore the results are artifi- cial and do not accurately reflect the actual recoveries of the substances of interest. In this respect, recovery experiments based on faecal samples from radiometabolism studies are more informative. In these samples, the metabolite content accurately reflects the mixture of metabolites present in the given species. As a result, it is possible to evaluate different extraction methods for use with faecal samples. We present studies on sheep, horses, pigs, hares and dogs that utilized samples containing naturally metabolized, 14C-labelled steroids. We recommend extracting faecal steroids by simply suspending the faeces in a high percentage of a primary alcohol (for glucocorticoid metabolites 80% aqueous methanol proved best suited for virtually all mammalian species tested so far). Not only does the procedure significantly increase the total amount of recovered radioactivity, it also increases the percentage of unconjugated metabolites, which are more likely to be recognized by the antibodies used in various immunoassays. The advantages of this extraction procedure are clear: it is very easy to use (no evaporation step is needed), it yields high recoveries and variation based on the extraction procedure is reduced to a minimum.
|
