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Author (up) Amandine Ramseyer; Bernard Thierry; Alain Boissy; Bertrand Dumont
Title Decision-making Processes in Group Departures of Cattle Type Journal Article
Year 2009 Publication Ethology Abbreviated Journal Ethology
Volume 115 Issue 10 Pages 948-957
Keywords
Abstract To keep social cohesiveness, group-living animals have to reach consensus decisions through recruitment processes. This implies that decision-making depends on the behaviours and social relationships of several group members at different stages of movements. We tested these assumptions in a group of fifteen 18-mo-old Charolais heifers (Bos taurus) at pasture, in which two observers continuously videotaped social interactions and group departures after resting periods. These departures were preceded by a phase of preparation characterized by an increase in activity. The number of heifers participating to a movement increased with the number of group members oriented in the direction of the movement before departure. The first moving animal also recruited a higher number of mates when it had a greater number of close neighbours, the first individuals to follow being mainly its preferential partners. Coercive interactions such as pressing behaviours were observed within the 5 min preceding or following departure. After departure, the numbers of walks and restarts of the first two movers were still operative in recruiting others. The frequency of pauses of the first mover was significantly higher when it was not followed, meaning that it adjusted its behaviour to that of other group members. Decision-making was distributed among group members, with any individual being liable to move first. The behaviour of cows and their spatial distribution before departure, at departure and after departure significantly affected the number of participants in the movement, demonstrating that decision-making was time-distributed in the studied cattle group.
Address INRA, UR 1213 Herbivores, Saint-Gens-Champanelle, France; Dpartement Ecologie, Physiologie et Ethologie, IPHC, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Universit de Strasbourg, Strasbourg, France
Corporate Author Thesis
Publisher Place of Publication © 2009 Blackwell Verlag GmbH Editor
Language Summary Language Original Title
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ISSN ISBN Medium
Area Expedition Conference
Notes Approved no
Call Number Equine Behaviour @ team @ Serial 4992
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Author (up) Bamford, A.J.; Monadjem, A.; Hardy, I.C.W.
Title Associations of Avian Facial Flushing and Skin Colouration with Agonistic Interaction Outcomes Type Journal Article
Year 2010 Publication Ethology Abbreviated Journal Ethology
Volume Issue Pages no-no
Keywords
Abstract Abstract Facial flushing, a colour change caused by variation of blood flow through highly vascularized skin, has been observed in taxonomically diverse bird species but the function of the behaviour has not been assessed. Lappet-faced vultures, Aegypius tracheliotos, have unfeathered heads that can rapidly flush from pink to dark red, and this has been hypothesized to indicate contest ability in vulture gatherings. We show that adults with flushed heads won most interactions against those with pale heads. A previously unnoticed colour variation of the throat, visible only when the head is flushed, was also related to the outcome of interactions: blue-throated adults participated in, and won, more interactions than red-throated adults. We suggest that the non-fixed groups of which lappet-faced vulture populations consist promote the evolution of signals of dominance that can be adjusted extremely rapidly.
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 1439-0310 ISBN Medium
Area Expedition Conference
Notes Approved no
Call Number Equine Behaviour @ team @ Serial 5180
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Author (up) Baragli, P.; Paoletti, E.; Vitale, V.; Sighieri, C.
Title Looking in the correct location for a hidden object: brief note about the memory of donkeys (Equus asinus) Type Journal Article
Year 2011 Publication Ethology Ecology & Evolution Abbreviated Journal Ethology Ecology & Evolution
Volume 23 Issue 2 Pages 187-192
Keywords
Abstract In recent years, considerable literature has been published on cognition in horses; however, much less is known about the cognitive abilities of domestic donkey (Equus asinus). This study aimed to expand our knowledge of donkey cognition by assessing their short-term memory capacity. We employed a detour problem combined with the classic delayed-response task, which has been extensively used to compare working memory duration in a variety of different species. A two-point choice apparatus was used to investigate location recall and search behaviour for a food target, after a short delay following its disappearance. Four donkeys completed the task with a 10 sec delay, while four others were tested with a 30 sec delay. Overall, each group performed above chance level on the test, showing that subjects had successfully encoded, maintained, and retrieved the existence and location of the target despite the loss of visual contact.
Address
Corporate Author Thesis
Publisher Taylor & Francis Place of Publication Editor
Language Summary Language Original Title
Series Editor Series Title Abbreviated Series Title
Series Volume Series Issue Edition
ISSN 0394-9370 ISBN Medium
Area Expedition Conference
Notes doi: 10.1080/03949370.2011.554885 Approved no
Call Number Equine Behaviour @ team @ Serial 6177
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Author (up) Biondi, L.M.; García, G.O.; Bó, M.S.; Vassallo, A.I.
Title Social Learning in the Caracara Chimango, Milvago chimango (Aves: Falconiformes): an Age Comparison Type Journal Article
Year 2010 Publication Ethology Abbreviated Journal Ethology
Volume 116 Issue 8 Pages 722-735
Keywords
Abstract Abstract Milvago chimango is a gregarious raptor showing great ecological plasticity. Their ability to explore new resources has allowed them to survive in areas with increasing human modification. In this study, we evaluated the social learning ability in wild-caught individuals of M. chimango. In particular, we tested whether an ‘observer’ individual could improve the acquisition of a novel behaviour by watching a ‘demonstrator,’ and we examined the effects of age of both observers and demonstrators on social learning. We measured the ability of 18 observers to open an opaque Plexiglas box containing food, and we compared their performance to that of 10 control birds who did not watch a demonstrator solve the task. Prior to watching a demonstrator, only two of the observers and two of the control birds were able to open the box. After watching a demonstrator, 67% of observers were able to open the box, outperforming control birds in speed and success. Juvenile observers were more successful and faster than adults at contacting and opening the box. The age of the demonstrator did not influence the observers’ likelihood of success. These results showed that M. chimango are able to learn a box-opening task with a hidden food reward by observing the behaviour of a conspecific and that this behaviour persisted over several days. Social learning ability in M. chimango might allow certain behavioural patterns, such as those related to novel resource acquisition in modified environments, to be socially transmitted among individuals in a population.
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 1439-0310 ISBN Medium
Area Expedition Conference
Notes Approved no
Call Number Equine Behaviour @ team @ Serial 5283
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Author (up) Black, J.M.
Title Preflight Signalling in Swans: A Mechanism for Group Cohesion and Flock Formation Type Journal Article
Year 1988 Publication Ethology Abbreviated Journal Ethology
Volume 79 Issue 2 Pages 143-157
Keywords
Abstract Abstract The preflight behaviour of whooper swans Cygnus cygnus and Bewick's swans Cygnus columbianus bewickii was examined to determine the adaptive significance of the ritual. Analysis of the preflight sequence revealed that the rate of signalling became significantly faster as the time of takeoff approached. This provides the first quantitative evidence that a threshold of excitability is responsible for triggering synchronised flight in social units. Two ultimate and two proximate factors that affect this threshold were uncovered. They are: 1) Maintaining proximity to partners—flight was delayed by birds with non-attentive mates and signalling lasted on average four times longer than those whose mates showed more interest. 2) Maintaining flock cohesiveness—birds which performed signals for longer periods while swimming among uninterested birds were successful in attracting followers 61% of the time. 3) The bird's feeding performance related to dominance status—less successful feeders (potentially hungry birds), flew after little time and few signals. 4) The type of feeding opportunity at the eventual destination—birds which flew to provided feeds (nutritious barley) spent less time performing preflight signals than when they flew to forage on grass fields.
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 1439-0310 ISBN Medium
Area Expedition Conference
Notes Approved no
Call Number Equine Behaviour @ team @ Serial 5315
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Author (up) Blumstein, D. T.; Barrow, L.; Luterra, M.
Title Olfactory Predator Discrimination in Yellow-Bellied Marmots Type Journal Article
Year 2008 Publication Ethology Abbreviated Journal Ethology
Volume 114 Issue 11 Pages 1135 - 1143
Keywords
Abstract The mechanism underlying olfactory predator identification may be relatively experience-independent, or it may rely on specific experience with predators. A mechanism by which prey might identify novel predators relies on the inevitable creation of sulfurous metabolites that are then excreted in the urine of carnivorous mammals. We tested whether free-living, yellow-bellied marmots (Marmota flaviventris) and mid-sized herbivores that fall prey to a variety of carnivorous mammals could discriminate herbivore (elk-Cervus elephas) urine from predator (red fox-Vulpes vulpes, coyote-Canis latrans, mountain lion-Felis concolor, wolf-Canis lupus) urine, a novel herbivore (moose-Alces alces), and a distilled water control. We further asked how specific this assessment was by testing whether marmots responded differently to predators representing different levels of risk and to familiar vs. unfamiliar predators. We found that marmots responded more to urine from coyotes (a familiar predator on adults), mountain lions (a potentially unfamiliar predator that could kill adults) and wolves (a locally extinct predator that could kill adults) than to elk urine (a non-predator). Red fox (a predator that poses a risk only to recently emerged marmot pups) urine elicited a less substantial (but not significantly so) response than coyote urine. Marmots can identify predators, even novel ones, using olfactory cues, suggesting that experience with a specific predator is not required to identify potential threats.
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Notes Approved no
Call Number Equine Behaviour @ team @ Serial 4641
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Author (up) Bourjade, M.; Moulinot, M.; Henry, S.; Richard-Yris, M.-A. Hausberger.M
Title Could Adults be Used to Improve Social Skills of Young Horses, Equus caballus? Type Journal Article
Year 2008 Publication Ethology Abbreviated Journal Ethology
Volume 50 Issue 4 Pages 408-417
Keywords horse • social influence • young-adult interaction • social development
Abstract We investigated the effects of the introduction of foreign adults on the behavior of young horses. First, we observed the behavior of 1- and 2-year-old domestic horses housed in same-age and same-sex groups (a standard housing system, but different from a natural situation). Then, two same-sex adults were introduced into each experimental group. Observations made before, during and after an introduction indicated that young horses reared in homogeneous groups of young had different behaviors compared to other domestic horses reared under more socially natural conditions. After the introduction of adults, young horses expressed new behaviors, preferential social associations emerged, positive social behavior increased and agonistic interactions decreased. These results have important implications both for understanding the influence that adults may have on the behavior of young horses, and in terms of husbandry, indicating the importance of keeping young horses with adults, although further studies are still necessary. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Dev Psychobiol 50: 408-417, 2008.
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Publisher Place of Publication Editor
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Notes Approved no
Call Number Equine Behaviour @ team @ Serial 4800
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Author (up) Bourjade, M.; Thierry, B.; Maumy, M.; Petit, O.
Title Decision-making in Przewalski horses (Equus ferus przewalskii) is driven by the ecological contexts of collective movements Type Journal Article
Year 2009 Publication Ethology Abbreviated Journal Ethology
Volume 115 Issue 4 Pages 321-330
Keywords
Abstract We addressed decision-making processes in the collective movements of

two groups of Przewalski horses (Equus ferus przewalskii) living in a semi

free-ranging population. We investigated whether different patterns of

group movement are related to certain ecological contexts (habitat use

and group activity) and analysed the possible decision-making processes

involved. We found two distinct patterns; ‘single-bout’ and ‘multiplebout’

movements occurred in both study groups. The movements were

defined by the occurrence of collective stops between bouts and differed

by their duration, distance covered and ecological context. For both

movements, we found that a preliminary period involving several horses

occurred before departure. In single-bout movements, all group members

rapidly joined the first moving horse, independently of the preliminary

period. In multiple-bout movements, however, the joining

process was longer; in particular when the number of decision-makers

and their pre-departure behaviour before departure increased. Multiplebout

movements were more often used by horses to switch habitats and

activities. This observation demonstrates that the horses need more time

to resolve motivational conflicts before these departures. We conclude

that decision-making in Przewalski horses is based on a shared consensus

process driven by ecological determinants.
Address
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Notes Approved no
Call Number Equine Behaviour @ team @ Serial 4801
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Author (up) Briard, L.; Dorn, C.; Petit, O.
Title Personality and Affinities Play a Key Role in the Organisation of Collective Movements in a Group of Domestic Horses Type Journal Article
Year 2015 Publication Ethology Abbreviated Journal Ethology
Volume 121 Issue 9 Pages 888-902
Keywords decision-making; equids; hierarchy; leadership; social network
Abstract Understanding how groups of individuals with different motives come to daily decisions about the exploitation of their environment is a key question in animal behaviour. While interindividual differences are often seen only as a threat to group cohesion, growing evidence shows that they may to some extent facilitate effective collective action. Recent studies suggest that personality differences influence how individuals are attracted to conspecifics and affect their behaviour as an initiator or a follower. However, most of the existing studies are limited to a few taxa, mainly social fish and arthropods. Horses are social herbivores that live in long-lasting groups and show identifiable personality differences between individuals. We studied a group of 38 individuals living in a 30-ha hilly pasture. Over 200 h, we sought to identify how far individual differences such as personality and affinity distribution affect the dynamic of their collective movements. First, we report that individuals distribute their relationships according to similar personality and hierarchical rank. This is the first study that demonstrates a positive assortment between unrelated individuals according to personality in a mammal species. Second, we measured individual propensity to initiate and found that bold individuals initiated more often than shy individuals. However, their success in terms of number of followers and joining duration did not depend on their individual characteristics. Moreover, joining process is influenced by social network, with preferred partners following each other and bolder individuals being located more often at the front of the movement. Our results illustrate the importance of taking into account interindividual behavioural differences in studies of social behaviours.
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ISSN 1439-0310 ISBN Medium
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Notes Approved no
Call Number Equine Behaviour @ team @ Serial 6153
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Author (up) Ceacero, F.; Landete-Castillejos, T.; Garcia, A.J.; Estevez, J.A.; Gallego, L.
Title Kinship Discrimination and Effects on Social Rank and Aggressiveness Levels in Iberian Red Deer Hinds Type Journal Article
Year 2007 Publication Ethology Abbreviated Journal Ethology
Volume 113 Issue 12 Pages 1133-1140
Keywords
Abstract Abstract Kin recognition is a widespread phenomenon that allows individuals to benefit by enhancing their inclusive fitness, and one of its most common forms is reducing aggressiveness towards relatives. We carried out an experiment with Iberian red deer hinds (Cervus elaphus hispanicus) in order to examine kin biases in dominance behaviour and its consequences on social rank. Three enclosed groups (n = 36, 23 and 21, respectively) were monitored during two lactation seasons and social rank hierarchies were assessed by analysing aggressive interactions matrices with Matman 1.1 software. Aggressive interactions between related hinds was significantly smaller than expected (chi2 = 5.02, df = 1, p = 0.025), not only between mother and daughter but also in second and third kinship degrees. Although rates of aggressiveness were similar to data published relating free-ranging C. e. scoticus, aggressive interactions with relatives were significantly smaller (chi2 = 39.0, df = 1, p < 0.001). This reduction of aggressiveness between related hinds was not the result of these hinds having a lower social rank: social rank was only related to age and weight, but not to kinship degree, calf sex or calving date. The decrease of aggressiveness towards first-, second- and third-degree relatives shows a complex kin recognition system in deer. Possible nepotistic roles in lactation include preventing milk thefts by non-kin and disturbing feeding of unrelated hinds.
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Notes Approved no
Call Number Equine Behaviour @ team @ Serial 4311
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