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Author Begall, S.; Cervený, J.; Neef, J.; Vojtech, O.; Burda, H. url  doi
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  Title Magnetic alignment in grazing and resting cattle and deer Type Journal Article
  Year 2008 Publication Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America Abbreviated Journal Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.  
  Volume 105 Issue 36 Pages 13451-13455  
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  Abstract We demonstrate by means of simple, noninvasive methods (analysis of satellite images, field observations, and measuring “deer beds” in snow) that domestic cattle (n = 8,510 in 308 pastures) across the globe, and grazing and resting red and roe deer (n = 2,974 at 241 localities), align their body axes in roughly a north–south direction. Direct observations of roe deer revealed that animals orient their heads northward when grazing or resting. Amazingly, this ubiquitous phenomenon does not seem to have been noticed by herdsmen, ranchers, or hunters. Because wind and light conditions could be excluded as a common denominator determining the body axis orientation, magnetic alignment is the most parsimonious explanation. To test the hypothesis that cattle orient their body axes along the field lines of the Earth's magnetic field, we analyzed the body orientation of cattle from localities with high magnetic declination. Here, magnetic north was a better predictor than geographic north. This study reveals the magnetic alignment in large mammals based on statistically sufficient sample sizes. Our findings open horizons for the study of magnetoreception in general and are of potential significance for applied ethology (husbandry, animal welfare). They challenge neuroscientists and biophysics to explain the proximate mechanisms.  
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  Notes 10.1073/pnas.0803650105 Approved no  
  Call Number Equine Behaviour @ team @ Serial 5316  
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Author Ward, A.J.W.; Sumpter, D.J.T.; Couzin, I.D.; Hart, P.J.B.; Krause, J. url  doi
openurl 
  Title Quorum decision-making facilitates information transfer in fish shoals Type Journal Article
  Year 2008 Publication Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America Abbreviated Journal Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.  
  Volume 105 Issue 19 Pages 6948-6953  
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  Abstract Despite the growing interest in collective phenomena such as “swarm intelligence” and “wisdom of the crowds,” little is known about the mechanisms underlying decision-making in vertebrate animal groups. How do animals use the behavior of others to make more accurate decisions, especially when it is not possible to identify which individuals possess pertinent information? One plausible answer is that individuals respond only when they see a threshold number of individuals perform a particular behavior. Here, we investigate the role of such “quorum responses” in the movement decisions of fish (three-spine stickleback, Gasterosteus aculeatus). We show that a quorum response to conspecifics can explain how sticklebacks make collective movement decisions, both in the absence and presence of a potential predation risk. Importantly our experimental work shows that a quorum response can reduce the likelihood of amplification of nonadaptive following behavior. Whereas the traveling direction of solitary fish was strongly influenced by a single replica conspecific, the replica was largely ignored by larger groups of four or eight sticklebacks under risk, and the addition of a second replica was required to exert influence on the movement decisions of such groups. Model simulations further predict that quorum responses by fish improve the accuracy and speed of their decision-making over that of independent decision-makers or those using a weak linear response. This study shows that effective and accurate information transfer in groups may be gained only through nonlinear responses of group members to each other, thus highlighting the importance of quorum decision-making.  
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  Notes 10.1073/pnas.0710344105 Approved no  
  Call Number Equine Behaviour @ team @ Serial 5252  
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Author Krützen, M.; Mann, J.; Heithaus, M.R.; Connor, R.C.; Bejder, L.; Sherwin, W.B. url  openurl
  Title Cultural transmission of tool use in bottlenose dolphins Type Journal Article
  Year 2005 Publication Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America Abbreviated Journal Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.  
  Volume 102 Issue 25 Pages 8939-8943  
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  Abstract In Shark Bay, wild bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops sp.) apparently use marine sponges as foraging tools. We demonstrate that genetic and ecological explanations for this behavior are inadequate; thus, “sponging” classifies as the first case of an existing material culture in a marine mammal species. Using mitochondrial DNA analyses, we show that sponging shows an almost exclusive vertical social transmission within a single matriline from mother to female offspring. Moreover, significant genetic relatedness among all adult spongers at the nuclear level indicates very recent coancestry, suggesting that all spongers are descendents of one recent “Sponging Eve.” Unlike in apes, tool use in this population is almost exclusively limited to a single matriline that is part of a large albeit open social network of frequently interacting individuals, adding a new dimension to charting cultural phenomena among animals.  
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  Notes 10.1073/pnas.0500232102 Approved no  
  Call Number Equine Behaviour @ team @ Serial 5916  
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Author Sol, D.; Duncan, R.P.; Blackburn, T.M.; Cassey, P.; Lefebvre, L. url  doi
openurl 
  Title Big brains, enhanced cognition, and response of birds to novel environments Type Journal Article
  Year 2005 Publication Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America Abbreviated Journal Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.  
  Volume 102 Issue 15 Pages 5460-5465  
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  Abstract The widely held hypothesis that enlarged brains have evolved as an adaptation to cope with novel or altered environmental conditions lacks firm empirical support. Here, we test this hypothesis for a major animal group (birds) by examining whether large-brained species show higher survival than small-brained species when introduced to nonnative locations. Using a global database documenting the outcome of >600 introduction events, we confirm that avian species with larger brains, relative to their body mass, tend to be more successful at establishing themselves in novel environments. Moreover, we provide evidence that larger brains help birds respond to novel conditions by enhancing their innovation propensity rather than indirectly through noncognitive mechanisms. These findings provide strong evidence for the hypothesis that enlarged brains function, and hence may have evolved, to deal with changes in the environment.  
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  Notes 10.1073/pnas.0408145102 Approved no  
  Call Number Equine Behaviour @ team @ Serial 4739  
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Author Drea, C.M.; Wallen, K. url  openurl
  Title Low-status monkeys “play dumb” when learning in mixed social groups Type Journal Article
  Year 1999 Publication Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America Abbreviated Journal Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.  
  Volume 96 Issue 22 Pages 12965-12969  
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  Abstract Many primates, including humans, live in complex hierarchical societies where social context and status affect daily life. Nevertheless, primate learning studies typically test single animals in limited laboratory settings where the important effects of social interactions and relationships cannot be studied. To investigate the impact of sociality on associative learning, we compared the individual performances of group-tested rhesus monkeys (Macaca mulatta) across various social contexts. We used a traditional discrimination paradigm that measures an animal's ability to form associations between cues and the obtaining of food in choice situations; but we adapted the task for group testing. After training a 55-member colony to separate on command into two subgroups, composed of either high- or low-status families, we exposed animals to two color discrimination problems, one with all monkeys present (combined condition), the other in their “dominant” and “subordinate” cohorts (split condition). Next, we manipulated learning history by testing animals on the same problems, but with the social contexts reversed. Monkeys from dominant families excelled in all conditions, but subordinates performed well in the split condition only, regardless of learning history. Subordinate animals had learned the associations, but expressed their knowledge only when segregated from higher-ranking animals. Because aggressive behavior was rare, performance deficits probably reflected voluntary inhibition. This experimental evidence of rank-related, social modulation of performance calls for greater consideration of social factors when assessing learning and may also have relevance for the evaluation of human scholastic achievement.  
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  Notes 10.1073/pnas.96.22.12965 Approved no  
  Call Number Serial 2093  
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Author Hostikka, S.L.; Eddy, R.L.; Byers, M.G.; Hoyhtya, M.; Shows, T.B.; Tryggvason, K. url  doi
openurl 
  Title Identification of a distinct type IV collagen alpha chain with restricted kidney distribution and assignment of its gene to the locus of X chromosome-linked Alport syndrome Type Journal Article
  Year 1990 Publication Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America Abbreviated Journal Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.  
  Volume 87 Issue 4 Pages 1606-1610  
  Keywords Amino Acid Sequence; Base Sequence; Chromosome Mapping; Cloning, Molecular; Collagen/*genetics; Epitopes/analysis; Female; Fluorescent Antibody Technique; Gene Library; *Genes; Humans; Immunoblotting; Kidney/cytology/*metabolism; Macromolecular Substances; Molecular Sequence Data; Nephritis, Hereditary/*genetics; Oligopeptides/chemical synthesis/immunology; Placenta/metabolism; Pregnancy; Restriction Mapping; Sequence Homology, Nucleic Acid; *X Chromosome  
  Abstract We have identified and extensively characterized a type IV collagen alpha chain, referred to as alpha 5(IV). Four overlapping cDNA clones isolated contain an open reading frame for 543 amino acid residues of the carboxyl-terminal end of a collagenous domain, a 229-residue carboxyl-terminal noncollagenous domain, and 1201 base pairs coding for a 3' untranslated region. The collagenous Gly-Xaa-Yaa repeat sequence has five imperfections that coincide with those in the corresponding region of the alpha 1(IV) chain. The noncollagenous domain has 12 conserved cysteine residues and 83% and 63% sequence identity with the noncollagenous domains of the alpha 1(IV) and alpha 2(IV) chains, respectively. The alpha 5(IV) chain has less sequence identity with the putative bovine alpha 3(IV) and alpha 4(IV) chains. Antiserum against an alpha 5(IV) synthetic peptide stained a polypeptide chain of about 185 kDa by immunoblot analysis and immunolocalization of the chain in human kidney was almost completely restricted to the glomerulus. The gene was assigned to the Xq22 locus by somatic cell hybrids and in situ hybridization. This may be identical or close to the locus of the X chromosome-linked Alport syndrome that is believed to be a type IV collagen disease.  
  Address Biocenter, University of Oulu, Finland  
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  Notes PMID:1689491 Approved no  
  Call Number Equine Behaviour @ team @ Serial 5291  
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Author Johnstone, R.A. doi  openurl
  Title Eavesdropping and animal conflict 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 16 Pages 9177-9180  
  Keywords *Aggression; Animals; *Behavior, Animal; *Conflict (Psychology); Models, Theoretical  
  Abstract Fights between pairs of animals frequently take place within a wider social context. The displays exchanged during conflict, and the outcome of an encounter, are often detectable by individuals who are not immediately involved. In at least some species, such bystanders are known to eavesdrop on contests between others, and to modify their behavior toward the contestants in response to the observed interaction. Here, I extend Maynard Smith's well known model of animal aggression, the Hawk-Dove game, to incorporate the possibility of eavesdroppers. I show that some eavesdropping is favored whenever the cost of losing an escalated fight exceeds the value of the contested resource, and that its equilibrium frequency is greatest when costs are relatively high. Eavesdropping reduces the risk of escalated conflict relative to that expected by chance, given the level of aggression in the population. However, it also promotes increased aggression, because it enhances the value of victory. The net result is that escalated conflicts are predicted to occur more frequently when eavesdropping is possible.  
  Address Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Downing Street, Cambridge CB2 3EJ, United Kingdom. raj1003@hermes.cam.ac.uk  
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  Notes PMID:11459936 Approved no  
  Call Number refbase @ user @ Serial 497  
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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 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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  Notes PMID:12130666 Approved no  
  Call Number refbase @ user @ Serial 772  
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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 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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  Notes PMID:12719527 Approved no  
  Call Number refbase @ user @ Serial 511  
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Author Chase, I.D.; Tovey, C.; Spangler-Martin, D.; Manfredonia, M. doi  openurl
  Title Individual differences versus social dynamics in the formation of animal dominance hierarchies 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 8 Pages 5744-5749  
  Keywords Animals; *Behavior, Animal; Fishes; Humans; *Social Behavior; *Social Dominance  
  Abstract Linear hierarchies, the classical pecking-order structures, are formed readily in both nature and the laboratory in a great range of species including humans. However, the probability of getting linear structures by chance alone is quite low. In this paper we investigate the two hypotheses that are proposed most often to explain linear hierarchies: they are predetermined by differences in the attributes of animals, or they are produced by the dynamics of social interaction, i.e., they are self-organizing. We evaluate these hypotheses using cichlid fish as model animals, and although differences in attributes play a significant part, we find that social interaction is necessary for high proportions of groups with linear hierarchies. Our results suggest that dominance hierarchy formation is a much richer and more complex phenomenon than previously thought, and we explore the implications of these results for evolutionary biology, the social sciences, and the use of animal models in understanding human social organization.  
  Address Department of Sociology, State University of New York, Stony Brook, NY 11794-4356, USA. Ichase@notes.cc.sunysb.edu  
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  Notes PMID:11960030 Approved no  
  Call Number refbase @ user @ Serial 442  
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