toggle visibility Search & Display Options

Select All    Deselect All
 |   | 
Details
   print
  Records Links
Author (up) Galef Jr., B.G.; Whiskin, E.E. doi  openurl
  Title Use of public information when foraging: effects of time available to sample foods Type Journal Article
  Year 1999 Publication Animal Cognition Abbreviated Journal Anim. Cogn.  
  Volume 2 Issue 2 Pages 103-107  
  Keywords  
  Abstract It has been proposed that use of socially acquired information by animals should increase as the time available for individual resource sampling decreases. We gave Norway rat “observers” either 2 or 5 h day-1 to sample four foods. Three of these foods were relatively palatable, but protein-poor; the fourth was relatively unpalatable, but protein-rich. We found that observer rats that for 2 h day-1 both sampled foods and interacted with demonstrators eating only the protein-rich food ate more of the protein-rich food than did observers that sampled for 2 h day-1 but had no opportunity to interact with demonstrators. On the other hand, observer rats that could sample foods for 5 h day-1 ate equal amounts of protein-rich food whether they interacted with a demonstrator fed protein-rich food or not. Subsequent analyses showed that the time available to observers to sample foods, rather than the opportunity to interact with demonstrators determined whether such interaction influenced observers' food choices. The results are consistent with the hypothesis that animals increase their use of public information in response to temporal constraints on opportunities for resource sampling.  
  Address  
  Corporate Author Thesis  
  Publisher Place of Publication Editor  
  Language 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 Equine Behaviour @ team @ Serial 3215  
Permanent link to this record
 

 
Author (up) Galef, J., Bennett G.; Whiskin, E.E. url  doi
openurl 
  Title Effects of environmental stability and demonstrator age on social learning of food preferences by young Norway rats Type Journal Article
  Year 2004 Publication Animal Behaviour Abbreviated Journal Anim. Behav.  
  Volume 68 Issue 4 Pages 897-902  
  Keywords  
  Abstract We used socially learned food preferences of Norway rats, Rattus norvegicus, to examine two common predictions of formal models of social learning in animals: (1) that animals living in relatively stable environments should be more attentive to socially acquired information than animals living in highly variable environments, and (2) that older demonstrators should have greater influence than younger demonstrators on the behaviour of young observers. Old and young demonstrators were equally effective in modifying the food preferences of juveniles that interacted with them. However, food choices of rats that were moved daily from one cage to another and fed at unpredictable times for unpredictable periods were less affected by demonstrators than were rats maintained in stable environments. Our results thus provided experimental support for the first, but not the second, prediction from theory.  
  Address  
  Corporate Author Thesis  
  Publisher Place of Publication Editor  
  Language Summary Language Original Title  
  Series Editor Series Title Abbreviated Series Title  
  Series Volume Series Issue Edition  
  ISSN 0003-3472 ISBN Medium  
  Area Expedition Conference  
  Notes Approved no  
  Call Number Equine Behaviour @ team @ Serial 5610  
Permanent link to this record
Select All    Deselect All
 |   | 
Details
   print