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Carter, C.; Greening, L. |
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Title |
Auditory stimulation of the stabled equine; the effect of different music genres on behaviour |
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equine, behaviour, music, environmental enrichment, auditory |
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Having a radio playing during the daytime at some equine establishments is common practice, but few studies have investigated whether particular music genres could be enriching for stabled horses or whether they may be perceived as aversive. This study aimed to establish whether behavioural responses differed when exposed to musical genres (Classical, Country, Jazz and Rock) and when compared to a control (no music). Eight Thoroughbred geldings (age range 8-10 years, average 8.9 years) were exposed to four musical environments and the control environment (no music) and observed in their usual stable, using instantaneous focal sampling every thirty seconds according to a pre-determined ethogram. Each horse was exposed to each genre for an hour in total, at a time when there was no human traffic or interference on the yard. All horses had been stabled for three hours before the study began. The association between genres and behavioural frequencies recorded for each environment was tested using Fisher’s Exact test of association (P<0.01), IBM SPSS21. No statistically significant associations (P=1.0) were recorded between alert or relax behaviours in Country, Classical, and Control environments. Significant associations (P<0.001) between frequency of alert behaviours and Jazz and Rock environments were noted. The latter genres appeared the most aversive which may be due to fast tempo and minor key, especially in the Jazz piece used. Country and Classical genres were slow tempo with a major key and appeared to result in more restful behaviours than Jazz or Rock. Further research is needed to; assess whether music could be used as an enriching tool, and investigate equine emotional capabilities to understand the emotional effects of music. Future studies could also consider how music impacts upon the behaviour of the human handler and whether this influences equine behaviour. |
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aCentre for Performance in Equestrian Sports, UWE Hartpury, Hartpury College, Gloucester, GL19 |
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Equine Behaviour @ team @ |
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5745 |
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Author |
Löckener, S.; Reese, S.; Erhard, M.; Wöhr, A.-C. |
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Title |
Pasturing in herds after housing in horseboxes induces a positive cognitive bias in horses |
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Year |
2016 |
Publication |
Journal of Veterinary Behavior: Clinical Applications and Research |
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11 |
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50-55 |
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Keywords |
judgment bias; affect; environmental enrichment; well-being; discrimination task; horse |
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Abstract Horses are kept in various housing systems, for example, with conspecifics in horse pens or singly in horseboxes, with or without pasturing. To provide appropriate living conditions for horses, it is necessary to know in which conditions they feel well or unwell. Here, a cognitive bias assessment provides information about an individual's affective state and its well-being. When a positive affective state prevails, animals tend to judge optimistically in ambiguous situations. When a negative affective state prevails, animals judge pessimistically in unclear situations. In the present study, we trained horses on a spatial discrimination task and evaluated their judgment of ambiguous locations when they had access to pastures and contact to conspecifics versus when they were kept singly in horseboxes. Ten days of pasturing and contact with conspecifics after being kept singly in horseboxes for 6 months induced a positive cognitive bias in the horses. We suggest that horses need to act out certain behaviors like exploration, social interaction, play, or grooming to fulfill their needs. After a time in which they were individually in horseboxes without pasturing and access to the herd, they seem to have a positive cognitive bias once they have access to pastures and conspecifics. This positive cognitive bias effect seems to disappear over time, as horses appear to adapt to the circumstances. |
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1558-7878 |
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Equine Behaviour @ team @ |
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6024 |
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López-Bao, J.V.; Sazatornil, V.; Llaneza, L.; Rodríguez, A. |
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Title |
Indirect Effects on Heathland Conservation and Wolf Persistence of Contradictory Policies that Threaten Traditional Free-Ranging Horse Husbandry |
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Journal Article |
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Year |
2013 |
Publication |
Conservation Letters |
Abbreviated Journal |
Conservation Letters |
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6 |
Issue |
6 |
Pages |
448-455 |
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Keywords |
Farmland biodiversity; heathlands; integration of environmental policies; management of livestock carcasses; traditional land uses; wolf conservation |
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Abstract |
Conservation agencies within the European Union promote the restoration of traditional land uses as a cost-effective way to preserve biodiversity outside reserves. Although the European Union pursues the integration of the environment into strategic decision-making, it also dictates sectoral policies that may damage farmland biodiversity. We illustrate this point by outlining the socioeconomic factors that allow the persistence of traditional free-ranging horse husbandry in Galicia, northwestern Spain. Free-ranging Galician mountain ponies provide ecological and socioeconomic services including the prevention of forest fires, the maintenance of heathlands and wolves, and the attenuation of wolf-human conflicts. This traditional livestock system may have persisted because it entails negligible costs for farmers. Wolf predation upon Galician mountain ponies does not threaten farmer's economies and seems to be tolerated better than attacks to more valuable stock. Recently, European Union's regulations on animal welfare, carcass management, or meat production put new economic and administrative burdens on farmers, make free-ranging horse rearing economically unsustainable, and incentivize its abandonment. The aim of the European Union to integrate environmental policies may be successful to preserve farmland biodiversity only through careful anticipation of the side effects of apparently unrelated regulations on the fragile equilibrium that sustain traditional land uses. |
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1755-263x |
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Equine Behaviour @ team @ |
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6211 |
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Author |
Quaresmini, C.; Forrester, G.S.; Spiezio, C.; Vallortigara, G. |
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Title |
Social environment elicits lateralized behaviors in gorillas (Gorilla gorilla gorilla) and chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) |
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Journal Article |
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Year |
2014 |
Publication |
Journal of Comparative Psychology |
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128 |
Issue |
3 |
Pages |
276-284 |
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Keywords |
*Animal Ethology; *Animal Social Behavior; *Chimpanzees; *Gorillas; *Social Influences; Cerebral Dominance; Lateral Dominance; Social Environments |
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The influence of the social environment on lateralized behaviors has now been investigated across a wide variety of animal species. New evidence suggests that the social environment can modulate behavior. Currently, there is a paucity of data relating to how primates navigate their environmental space, and investigations that consider the naturalistic context of the individual are few and fragmented. Moreover, there are competing theories about whether only the right or rather both cerebral hemispheres are involved in the processing of social stimuli, especially in emotion processing. Here we provide the first report of lateralized social behaviors elicited by great apes. We employed a continuous focal animal sampling method to record the spontaneous interactions of a captive zoo-living colony of chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) and a biological family group of peer-reared western lowland gorillas (Gorilla gorilla gorilla). We specifically focused on which side of the body (i.e., front, rear, left, right) the focal individual preferred to keep conspecifics. Utilizing a newly developed quantitative corpus-coding scheme, analysis revealed both chimpanzees and gorillas demonstrated a significant group-level preference for focal individuals to keep conspecifics positioned to the front of them compared with behind them. More interestingly, both groups also manifested a population-level bias to keep conspecifics on their left side compared with their right side. Our findings suggest a social processing dominance of the right hemisphere for context-specific social environments. Results are discussed in light of the evolutionary adaptive value of social stimulus as a triggering factor for the manifestation of group-level lateralized behaviors. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved) |
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Quaresmini, Caterina: Department of Psychology and Cognitive Sciences, University of Trento, Corso Bettini 31, Rovereto, Italy, 38068, caterina.quaresmini@gmail.com |
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American Psychological Association |
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Us |
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1939-2087(Electronic),0735-7036(Print) |
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Equine Behaviour @ team @ 2014-13828-001 |
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6396 |
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Author |
Potts, R. |
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Title |
Variability selection in hominid evolution |
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Journal Article |
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Year |
1998 |
Publication |
Evolutionary Anthropology: Issues, News, and Reviews |
Abbreviated Journal |
Evol. Anthropol. |
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7 |
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3 |
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81-96 |
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variability selection; hominids; environment; adaptation; natural selection; evolution |
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Variability selection (abbreviated as VS) is a process considered to link adaptive change to large degrees of environment variability. Its application to hominid evolution is based, in part, on the pronounced rise in environmental remodeling that took place over the past several million years. The VS hypothesis differs from prior views of hominid evolution, which stress the consistent selective effects associated with specific habitats or directional trends (e.g., woodland, savanna expansion, cooling). According to the VS hypothesis, wide fluctuations over time created a growing disparity in adaptive conditions. Inconsistency in selection eventually caused habitat-specific adaptations to be replaced by structures and behaviors responsive to complex environmental change. Key hominid adaptations, in fact, emerged during times of heightened variability. Early bipedality, encephalized brains, and complex human sociality appear to signify a sequence of VS adaptations—i.e., a ratcheting up of versatility and responsiveness to novel environments experienced over the past 6 million years. The adaptive results of VS cannot be extrapolated from selection within a single environmental shift or relatively stable habitat. If some complex traits indeed require disparities in adaptive setting (and relative fitness) in order to evolve, the VS idea counters the prevailing view that adaptive change necessitates long-term, directional consistency in selection. © 1998 Wiley-Liss, Inc. |
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John Wiley & Sons, Inc. |
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1520-6505 |
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Equine Behaviour @ team @ |
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5461 |
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Hofmeester, T.R.; Cromsigt, J.P.G.M.; Odden, J.; Andrén, H.; Kindberg, J.; Linnell, J.D.C. |
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Title |
Framing pictures: A conceptual framework to identify and correct for biases in detection probability of camera traps enabling multi-species comparison |
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Journal Article |
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2019 |
Publication |
Ecology and Evolution |
Abbreviated Journal |
Ecol Evol |
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animal characteristics; detectability; environmental variables; mammal monitoring; reuse of data; trail camera |
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Abstract Obtaining reliable species observations is of great importance in animal ecology and wildlife conservation. An increasing number of studies use camera traps (CTs) to study wildlife communities, and an increasing effort is made to make better use and reuse of the large amounts of data that are produced. It is in these circumstances that it becomes paramount to correct for the species- and study-specific variation in imperfect detection within CTs. We reviewed the literature and used our own experience to compile a list of factors that affect CT detection of animals. We did this within a conceptual framework of six distinct scales separating out the influences of (a) animal characteristics, (b) CT specifications, (c) CT set-up protocols, and (d) environmental variables. We identified 40 factors that can potentially influence the detection of animals by CTs at these six scales. Many of these factors were related to only a few overarching parameters. Most of the animal characteristics scale with body mass and diet type, and most environmental characteristics differ with season or latitude such that remote sensing products like NDVI could be used as a proxy index to capture this variation. Factors that influence detection at the microsite and camera scales are probably the most important in determining CT detection of animals. The type of study and specific research question will determine which factors should be corrected. Corrections can be done by directly adjusting the CT metric of interest or by using covariates in a statistical framework. Our conceptual framework can be used to design better CT studies and help when analyzing CT data. Furthermore, it provides an overview of which factors should be reported in CT studies to make them repeatable, comparable, and their data reusable. This should greatly improve the possibilities for global scale analyses of (reused) CT data. |
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John Wiley & Sons, Ltd |
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2045-7758 |
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doi: 10.1002/ece3.4878 |
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Equine Behaviour @ team @ |
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6518 |
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Author |
López-Bao, J.V.; Sazatornil, V.; Llaneza, L.; Rodríguez, A. |
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Title |
Indirect Effects on Heathland Conservation and Wolf Persistence of Contradictory Policies that Threaten Traditional Free-Ranging Horse Husbandry |
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Journal Article |
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Year |
2013 |
Publication |
Conservation Letters |
Abbreviated Journal |
Conservation Letters |
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Volume |
6 |
Issue |
6 |
Pages |
448-455 |
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Keywords |
Farmland biodiversity; heathlands; integration of environmental policies; management of livestock carcasses; traditional land uses; wolf conservation |
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Abstract |
Abstract Conservation agencies within the European Union promote the restoration of traditional land uses as a cost-effective way to preserve biodiversity outside reserves. Although the European Union pursues the integration of the environment into strategic decision-making, it also dictates sectoral policies that may damage farmland biodiversity. We illustrate this point by outlining the socioeconomic factors that allow the persistence of traditional free-ranging horse husbandry in Galicia, northwestern Spain. Free-ranging Galician mountain ponies provide ecological and socioeconomic services including the prevention of forest fires, the maintenance of heathlands and wolves, and the attenuation of wolf-human conflicts. This traditional livestock system may have persisted because it entails negligible costs for farmers. Wolf predation upon Galician mountain ponies does not threaten farmer's economies and seems to be tolerated better than attacks to more valuable stock. Recently, European Union's regulations on animal welfare, carcass management, or meat production put new economic and administrative burdens on farmers, make free-ranging horse rearing economically unsustainable, and incentivize its abandonment. The aim of the European Union to integrate environmental policies may be successful to preserve farmland biodiversity only through careful anticipation of the side effects of apparently unrelated regulations on the fragile equilibrium that sustain traditional land uses. |
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John Wiley & Sons, Ltd |
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1755-263x |
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Notes |
doi: 10.1111/conl.12014 |
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Equine Behaviour @ team @ |
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6622 |
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Author |
López-Bao, J.V.; Sazatornil, V.; Llaneza, L.; Rodríguez, A. |
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Title |
Indirect Effects on Heathland Conservation and Wolf Persistence of Contradictory Policies that Threaten Traditional Free-Ranging Horse Husbandry |
Type |
Journal Article |
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Year |
2013 |
Publication |
Conservation Letters |
Abbreviated Journal |
Conservation Letters |
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Volume |
6 |
Issue |
6 |
Pages |
448-455 |
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Keywords |
Farmland biodiversity; heathlands; integration of environmental policies; management of livestock carcasses; traditional land uses; wolf conservation |
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Abstract |
Abstract Conservation agencies within the European Union promote the restoration of traditional land uses as a cost-effective way to preserve biodiversity outside reserves. Although the European Union pursues the integration of the environment into strategic decision-making, it also dictates sectoral policies that may damage farmland biodiversity. We illustrate this point by outlining the socioeconomic factors that allow the persistence of traditional free-ranging horse husbandry in Galicia, northwestern Spain. Free-ranging Galician mountain ponies provide ecological and socioeconomic services including the prevention of forest fires, the maintenance of heathlands and wolves, and the attenuation of wolf-human conflicts. This traditional livestock system may have persisted because it entails negligible costs for farmers. Wolf predation upon Galician mountain ponies does not threaten farmer's economies and seems to be tolerated better than attacks to more valuable stock. Recently, European Union's regulations on animal welfare, carcass management, or meat production put new economic and administrative burdens on farmers, make free-ranging horse rearing economically unsustainable, and incentivize its abandonment. The aim of the European Union to integrate environmental policies may be successful to preserve farmland biodiversity only through careful anticipation of the side effects of apparently unrelated regulations on the fragile equilibrium that sustain traditional land uses. |
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John Wiley & Sons, Ltd |
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1755-263x |
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https://doi.org/10.1111/conl.12014 |
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Equine Behaviour @ team @ |
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6685 |
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Biro, D.; Inoue-Nakamura, N.; Tonooka, R.; Yamakoshi, G.; Sousa, C.; Matsuzawa, T. |
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Title |
Cultural innovation and transmission of tool use in wild chimpanzees: evidence from field experiments |
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Journal Article |
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Year |
2003 |
Publication |
Animal Cognition |
Abbreviated Journal |
Anim. Cogn. |
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6 |
Issue |
4 |
Pages |
213-223 |
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Animals; Cooking and Eating Utensils; *Culture; *Diffusion of Innovation; *Feeding Behavior/psychology; Female; Functional Laterality; *Imitative Behavior; Male; Motor Skills; Pan troglodytes/*psychology; *Social Environment |
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Abstract |
Chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) are the most proficient and versatile users of tools in the wild. How such skills become integrated into the behavioural repertoire of wild chimpanzee communities is investigated here by drawing together evidence from three complementary approaches in a group of oil-palm nut- ( Elaeis guineensis) cracking chimpanzees at Bossou, Guinea. First, extensive surveys of communities adjacent to Bossou have shown that population-specific details of tool use, such as the selection of species of nuts as targets for cracking, cannot be explained purely on the basis of ecological differences. Second, a 16-year longitudinal record tracing the development of nut-cracking in individual chimpanzees has highlighted the importance of a critical period for learning (3-5 years of age), while the similar learning contexts experienced by siblings have been found to result in near-perfect (13 out of 14 dyads) inter-sibling correspondence in laterality. Third, novel data from field experiments involving the introduction of unfamiliar species of nuts to the Bossou group illuminates key aspects of both cultural innovation and transmission. We show that responses of individuals toward the novel items differ markedly with age, with juveniles being the most likely to explore. Furthermore, subjects are highly specific in their selection of conspecifics as models for observation, attending to the nut-cracking activities of individuals in the same age group or older, but not younger than themselves. Together with the phenomenon of inter-community migration, these results demonstrate a mechanism for the emergence of culture in wild chimpanzees. |
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Address |
Primate Research Institute, Kyoto University, Japan. dora.biro@zoology.oxford.ac.uk |
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Springer-Verlag |
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English |
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1435-9448 |
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PMID:12898285 |
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Equine Behaviour @ team @ |
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2560 |
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Author |
De Giorgio, F.; Schoorl, J.M. |
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Title |
Why isolate during training? Social learning and social cognition applied as training approach for young horses (Equus caballus) |
Type |
Conference Article |
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Year |
2012 |
Publication |
Proceedings of the 2. International Equine Science Meeting |
Abbreviated Journal |
Proc. 2. Int. Equine. Sci. Mtg |
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in press |
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Cognitive approach; Horse training; Horse-Human relationship; Social environment; Social learning |
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Abstract |
In the last decade an increasing number of studies has been oriented towards equine social learning and their social behavior within the herd (Kruger‚ 2006-2008). In social species, social learning is important to learn and gain useful skills to move and live in their own social and environmental context. Group housing has been recognized as an important element to fulfill the physical and behavioral needs of horses, especially their need for social contact (Søndergaard‚ 2011). Still‚ when it comes to horse training, the social aspect and‚ in general‚ cognitive abilities of the horse are rarely taken into account. Although it is widely accepted that social isolation is stressful for horse (Mal et al, 1991a and 1991b) still isolating a young horse is the first step when it comes to training methods. Due to tradition and culture and our performance-oriented society it is both difficult to accept and apply a different social/cognitive training approach. Training sessions are focused on immediate results whereas in cognitive learning part of the process is latent and will not be visible immediately‚ but taking the cognitive skills into account plays an important role in avoiding tension both in the horse as in the human-horse interaction (Baragli and De Giorgio, 2011). In this study we tested the possibility to apply social learning by creating a social environment‚ favoring a cognitive learning approach‚ for the training of six young horses. The group existed in three males and three females, between two and three years old. All six showed initial difficulties and defense to human interaction. They were housed in two groups in adjacent spacious paddocks where they had ample opportunity to move and express their individual and social behavioral repertoire. Each horse had one training session per week without isolating it from the others. The training sessions were held following a cognitive-relational model defined as the equine-zooanthropologic approach (De Giorgio, 2010 – Marchesini, 2011). The learning objectives were to be able to handle each horse‚ conduct it‚ saddle and ride it within a maximum time-frame of two years. Every time a defensive or alert behavior would occur the training activity was re-arranged to not over-pressure the horse. Therefore the persons working with the horses carried out the activities without tight expectations focusing on the horses’ positive attention. After eighteen months all six horses were used to the saddle and to riding. None of the horses ever fled or showed defense behavior and in the case of unexpected events they showed no emotional reactivity/reactive behavior. Today the horses show the same calm behavior whenever worked individually. This preliminary study highlights how social learning applied to equestrian activity can be fundamental for safety and welfare and the establishment of a more problem-free relationship between horse and human. Safety as the defensive behavior seems to have been reduced and welfare as the horses have been trained in a social context without being isolated and thus without being stressed during the training experience. |
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De Giorgio, F. |
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Xenophon Publishing |
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Wald |
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Krueger, K. |
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978-3-9808134-26 |
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Equine Behaviour @ team @ |
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5528 |
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