Records |
Author |
Held, S.; Baumgartner, J.; Kilbride, A.; Byrne, R.W.; Mendl, M. |
Title |
Foraging behaviour in domestic pigs (Sus scrofa): remembering and prioritizing food sites of different value |
Type |
Journal Article |
Year |
2005 |
Publication |
Animal Cognition |
Abbreviated Journal |
Anim. Cogn. |
Volume |
8 |
Issue |
2 |
Pages |
114-121 |
Keywords |
Animals; *Appetitive Behavior; *Association Learning; Feeding Behavior/*psychology; Female; *Space Perception; Sus scrofa/*psychology |
Abstract |
This experiment investigated whether domestic pigs can remember the locations of food sites of different relative value, and how a restricted retrieval choice affects their foraging behaviour. Nine juvenile female pigs were trained to relocate two food sites out of a possible eight in a spatial memory task. The two baited sites contained different amounts of food and an obstacle was added to the smaller amount to increase handling time. On each trial, a pig searched for the two baited sites (search visit). Once it had found and eaten the bait, it returned for a second (relocation) visit, in which the two same sites were baited. Baited sites were changed between trials. All subjects learnt the task. When allowed to retrieve both baits, the subjects showed no preference for retrieving a particular one first (experiment 1). When they were allowed to retrieve only one bait, a significant overall preference for retrieving the larger amount emerged across subjects (experiment 2). To test whether this preference reflected an avoidance of the obstacle with the smaller bait, 15 choice-restricted control trials were conducted. In control trials obstacles were present with both baits. Pigs continued to retrieve the larger bait, indicating they had discriminated between the two food sites on the basis of quantity or profitability and adjusted their behaviour accordingly when the relocation choice was restricted. This suggests for the first time that domestic pigs have the ability to discriminate between food sites of different relative value and to remember their respective locations. |
Address |
Department of Clinical Veterinary Science, Centre for Behavioural Biology, University of Bristol, Langford, BS40 5DU, UK. suzanne.held@bris.ac.uk |
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1435-9448 |
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PMID:15871038 |
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Call Number |
Equine Behaviour @ team @ |
Serial |
2487 |
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Author |
Nicol, C.J. |
Title |
Development, direction, and damage limitation: social learning in domestic fowl |
Type |
Journal Article |
Year |
2004 |
Publication |
Learning & behavior : a Psychonomic Society publication |
Abbreviated Journal |
Learn Behav |
Volume |
32 |
Issue |
1 |
Pages |
72-81 |
Keywords |
Adaptation, Psychological; Age Factors; Animals; Behavior, Animal; *Chickens; *Feeding Behavior; *Food Preferences; *Imitative Behavior; Imprinting (Psychology); *Learning; Maternal Behavior; Reinforcement (Psychology); *Social Environment; *Social Facilitation |
Abstract |
This review highlights two areas of particular interest in the study of social learning in fowl. First, the role of social learning in the development of feeding and foraging behavior in young chicks and older birds is described. The role of the hen as a demonstrator and possible teacher is considered, and the subsequent social influence of brood mates and other companions on food avoidance and food preference learning is discussed. Second, the way in which work on domestic fowl has contributed to an understanding of the importance of directed social learning is examined. The well-characterized hierarchical social organization of small chicken flocks has been used to design studies which demonstrate that the probability of social transmission is strongly influenced by social relationships between birds. The practical implications of understanding the role of social learning in the spread of injurious behaviors in this economically important species are briefly considered. |
Address |
Department of Clinical Veterinary Science, University of Bristol, Langford, Bristol, England. c.j.nicol@bristol.ac.uk |
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1543-4494 |
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PMID:15161142 |
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no |
Call Number |
refbase @ user @ |
Serial |
75 |
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Author |
Vlamings, P.H.J.M.; Uher, J.; Call, J. |
Title |
How the great apes (Pan troglodytes, Pongo pygmaeus, Pan paniscus, and Gorilla gorilla) perform on the reversed contingency task: the effects of food quantity and food visibility |
Type |
Journal Article |
Year |
2006 |
Publication |
Journal of Experimental Psychology. Animal Behavior Processes |
Abbreviated Journal |
J Exp Psychol Anim Behav Process |
Volume |
32 |
Issue |
1 |
Pages |
60-70 |
Keywords |
Age Factors; Animals; Behavior, Animal/physiology; Cognition; Conditioning (Psychology); Female; *Food; Gorilla gorilla/*psychology; *Learning; Male; Pan paniscus/*psychology; Pan troglodytes/*psychology; Pongo pygmaeus/*psychology; *Visual Perception |
Abstract |
S. T. Boysen and G. G. Berntson (1995) found that chimpanzees performed poorly on a reversed contingency task in which they had to point to the smaller of 2 food quantities to acquire the larger quantity. The authors compared the performance of 4 great ape species (Pan troglodytes, Pongo pygmaeus, Pan paniscus, and Gorilla gorilla) on the reversed contingency task while manipulating food quantity (0-4 or 1-4) and food visibility (visible pairs or covered pairs). Results showed no systematic species differences but large individual differences. Some individuals of each species were able to solve the reversed contingency task. Both quantity and visibility of the food items had a significant effect on performance. Subjects performed better when the disparity between quantities was smaller and the quantities were not directly visible. |
Address |
Department of Developmental and Comparative Psychology, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, Germany. p.vlamings@psychology.unimaas.nl |
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0097-7403 |
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PMID:16435965 |
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no |
Call Number |
Equine Behaviour @ team @ |
Serial |
2765 |
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Author |
Gould, J.L. |
Title |
Animal cognition |
Type |
Journal Article |
Year |
2004 |
Publication |
Current Biology : CB |
Abbreviated Journal |
Curr Biol |
Volume |
14 |
Issue |
10 |
Pages |
R372-5 |
Keywords |
Animals; Awareness; Behavior, Animal/*physiology; Cognition/*physiology; Concept Formation; Decision Making; Instinct; Intelligence/*physiology; Learning/*physiology; Species Specificity |
Abstract |
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Address |
Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey 08544, USA. gould@princeton.edu |
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ISSN |
0960-9822 |
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PMID:15186759 |
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no |
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Equine Behaviour @ team @ |
Serial |
4169 |
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Author |
Lonsdorf, E.V. |
Title |
What is the role of mothers in the acquisition of termite-fishing behaviors in wild chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes schweinfurthii)? |
Type |
Journal Article |
Year |
2006 |
Publication |
Animal Cognition |
Abbreviated Journal |
Anim. Cogn. |
Volume |
9 |
Issue |
1 |
Pages |
36-46 |
Keywords |
Animals; Animals, Wild; *Behavior, Animal; Cooking and Eating Utensils; Feeding Behavior/*psychology; Female; *Imitative Behavior; Learning; Mothers/*psychology; Motor Skills; Pan troglodytes/*psychology; Problem Solving |
Abstract |
This paper explores the role of maternal influences on the acquisition of a tool-using task in wild chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes schweinfurthii) in order to build on and complement previous work done in captivity. Young chimpanzees show a long period of offspring dependency on mothers and it is during this period that offspring learn several important skills, especially how to and on what to forage. At Gombe National Park, one skill that is acquired during dependency is termite-fishing, a complex behavior that involves inserting a tool made from the surrounding vegetation into a termite mound and extracting the termites that attack and cling to the tool. All chimpanzees observed at Gombe have acquired the termite-fishing skill by the age of 5.5 years. Since the mother is the primary source of information throughout this time period, I investigated the influence of mothers' individual termite-fishing characteristics on their offsprings' speed of acquisition and proficiency at the skill once acquired. Mother's time spent alone or with maternal family members, which is highly correlated to time spent termite-fishing, was positively correlated to offspring's acquisition of critical elements of the skill. I also investigated the specific types of social interactions that occur between mothers and offspring at the termite mound and found that mothers are highly tolerant to offspring, even when the behavior of the offspring may disrupt the termite-fishing attempt. However, no active facilitation by mothers of offsprings' attempts were observed. |
Address |
Department of Ecology, Evolution and Behavior, University of Minnesota, St. Paul, MN 55108, USA. elonsdorf@lpzoo.org |
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1435-9448 |
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Notes |
PMID:16195914 |
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no |
Call Number |
Equine Behaviour @ team @ |
Serial |
2480 |
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Author |
Gácsi, M.; Kara, E.; Belényi, B.; Topál, J.; Miklósi, Á. |
Title |
The effect of development and individual differences in pointing comprehension of dogs |
Type |
Journal Article |
Year |
2009 |
Publication |
Animal Cognition |
Abbreviated Journal |
Anim. Cogn. |
Volume |
12 |
Issue |
3 |
Pages |
471-479 |
Keywords |
Age Factors; Analysis of Variance; Animals; *Association Learning; Attention; Chi-Square Distribution; Choice Behavior; *Comprehension; *Concept Formation; Dogs/*psychology; Female; *Gestures; Humans; Male; Orientation; Statistics, Nonparametric |
Abstract |
In spite of the rather different procedures actually used in comparative studies to test the ability of different species to rely on the human pointing gesture, there is no debate on the high performance of dogs in such tasks. Very little is known, however, on the course through which they acquire this ability or the probable factors influencing the process. Important developmental questions have remained unsolved and also some methodological concerns should be addressed before we can convincingly argue for one interpretation or another. In this study we tested 180 dogs of different age (from 2 months to adults) to investigate their performance in the human distal momentary pointing gesture. The results, analyzed at both the group and the individual levels, showed no difference in the performance according to age, indicating that in dogs the comprehension of the human pointing may require only very limited and rapid early learning to fully develop. Interestingly, neither the keeping conditions nor the time spent in active interaction with the owner, and not even some special (agility) training for using human visual cues, had significant effect on the success and explained individual differences. The performance of the dogs was rather stable over time: during the 20 trials within a session and even when subsamples of different age were repeatedly tested. Considering that in spite of the general success at the group level, more than half of the dogs were not successful at the individual level, we revealed alternative “decision-making rules” other than following the pointing gesture of the experimenter. |
Address |
Department of Ethology, Eotvos University, Budapest, Hungary. gm.art@t-online.hu |
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ISSN |
1435-9456 |
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Notes |
PMID:19130102 |
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no |
Call Number |
Equine Behaviour @ team @ |
Serial |
4969 |
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Author |
Waite, T.A. |
Title |
Interruptions improve choice performance in gray jays: prolonged information processing versus minimization of costly errors |
Type |
Journal Article |
Year |
2002 |
Publication |
Animal Cognition |
Abbreviated Journal |
Anim. Cogn. |
Volume |
5 |
Issue |
4 |
Pages |
209-214 |
Keywords |
Animals; *Behavior, Animal; *Choice Behavior; Female; Learning; Male; Models, Biological; Motivation; Reinforcement Schedule; Songbirds/*physiology; Time Factors |
Abstract |
Under the assumption that selection favors minimization of costly errors, erroneous choice may be common when its fitness cost is low. According to an adaptive-choice model, this cost depends on the rate at which an animal encounters the choice: the higher this rate, the smaller the cost of choosing a less valuable option. Errors should thus be more common when interruptions to foraging are shorter. A previous experiment supported this prediction: gray jays, Perisoreus canadensis, were more error prone when subjected to shorter delays to access to food rewards. This pattern, though, is also predicted by an attentional-constraints model. Because the subjects were able to inspect the rewards during delays, their improved performance when subjected to longer delays could have been a byproduct of the experimentally prolonged opportunity for information processing. To evaluate this possibility, a follow-up experiment manipulated both delay to access and whether rewards could be inspected during delays. Depriving jays of the opportunity to inspect rewards (using opaque lids) induced only a small, nonsignificant increase in error rate. This effect was independent of length of delay and so the jays' improved performance when subjected to longer delays was not simply a byproduct of prolonged information processing. More definitively, even when the jays were prevented from inspecting rewards during delays, their performance improved when subjected to longer delays. The findings are thus consistent with the adaptive-choice model. |
Address |
Department of Evolution, Ecology, and Organismal Biology, Ohio State University, 1735 Neil Avenue, Columbus, OH 43210-1293, USA. waite.1@osu.edu |
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1435-9448 |
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PMID:12461598 |
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no |
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Equine Behaviour @ team @ |
Serial |
2592 |
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Author |
Agrillo, C.; Dadda, M.; Bisazza, A. |
Title |
Quantity discrimination in female mosquitofish |
Type |
Journal Article |
Year |
2007 |
Publication |
Animal cognition |
Abbreviated Journal |
Anim. Cogn. |
Volume |
10 |
Issue |
1 |
Pages |
63-70 |
Keywords |
Animals; Cognition; *Cyprinodontiformes; *Discrimination Learning; Female; Male; Mathematics; *Pattern Recognition, Visual |
Abstract |
The ability in animals to count and represent different numbers of objects has received a great deal of attention in the past few decades. Cumulative evidence from comparative studies on number discriminations report obvious analogies among human babies, non-human primates and birds and are consistent with the hypothesis of two distinct and widespread mechanisms, one for counting small numbers (<4) precisely, and one for quantifying large numbers approximately. We investigated the ability to discriminate among different numerosities, in a distantly related species, the mosquitofish, by using the spontaneous choice of a gravid female to join large groups of females as protection from a sexually harassing male. In one experiment, we found that females were able to discriminate between two shoals with a 1:2 numerosity ratio (2 vs. 4, 4 vs. 8 and 8 vs. 16 fish) but failed to discriminate a 2:3 ratio (8 vs. 12 fish). In the second experiment, we studied the ability to discriminate between shoals that differed by one element; females were able to select the larger shoal when the paired numbers were 2 vs. 3 or 3 vs. 4 but not 4 vs. 5 or 5 vs. 6. Our study indicates that numerical abilities in fish are comparable with those of other non-verbal creatures studied; results are in agreement with the hypothesis of the existence of two distinct systems for quantity discrimination in vertebrates. |
Address |
Department of General Psychology, University of Padova, via Venezia 8, 35131, Padova, Italy. christian.agrillo@unipd.it |
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1435-9448 |
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PMID:16868736 |
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no |
Call Number |
refbase @ user @ |
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339 |
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Author |
Regolin, L.; Marconato, F.; Vallortigara, G. |
Title |
Hemispheric differences in the recognition of partly occluded objects by newly hatched domestic chicks (Gallus gallus) |
Type |
Journal Article |
Year |
2004 |
Publication |
Animal Cognition |
Abbreviated Journal |
Anim. Cogn. |
Volume |
7 |
Issue |
3 |
Pages |
162-170 |
Keywords |
Animals; Discrimination Learning/physiology; Dominance, Cerebral/*physiology; Female; Form Perception/*physiology; Imprinting (Psychology)/*physiology; Pattern Recognition, Visual/*physiology; Photic Stimulation; Random Allocation; Vision, Monocular/*physiology |
Abstract |
Domestic chicks are capable of perceiving as a whole objects partly concealed by occluders (“amodal completion”). In previous studies chicks were imprinted on a certain configuration and at test they were required to choose between two alternative versions of it. Using the same paradigm we now investigated the presence of hemispheric differences in amodal completion by testing newborn chicks with one eye temporarily patched. Separate groups of newly hatched chicks were imprinted binocularly: (1) on a square partly occluded by a superimposed bar, (2) on a whole or (3) on an amputated version of the square. At test, in monocular conditions, each chick was presented with a free choice between a complete and an amputated square. In the crucial condition 1, chicks tested with only their left eye in use chose the complete square (like binocular chicks would do); right-eyed chicks, in contrast, tended to choose the amputated square. Similar results were obtained in another group of chicks imprinted binocularly onto a cross (either occluded or amputated in its central part) and required to choose between a complete or an amputated cross. Left-eyed and binocular chicks chose the complete cross, whereas right-eyed chicks did not choose the amputated cross significantly more often. These findings suggest that neural structures fed by the left eye (mainly located in the right hemisphere) are, in the chick, more inclined to a “global” analysis of visual scenes, whereas those fed by the right eye seem to be more inclined to a “featural” analysis of visual scenes. |
Address |
Department of General Psychology, University of Padova, Via Venezia 8, 35131, Padova, Italy. lucia.regolin@unipd.it |
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1435-9448 |
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PMID:15241654 |
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no |
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Equine Behaviour @ team @ |
Serial |
2519 |
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Author |
Tommasi, L.; Vallortigara, G. |
Title |
Searching for the center: spatial cognition in the domestic chick (Gallus gallus) |
Type |
Journal Article |
Year |
2000 |
Publication |
Journal of Experimental Psychology. Animal Behavior Processes |
Abbreviated Journal |
J Exp Psychol Anim Behav Process |
Volume |
26 |
Issue |
4 |
Pages |
477-486 |
Keywords |
Animals; Behavior, Animal/physiology; Chickens; Cognition/*physiology; Learning/physiology; Male; Space Perception/*physiology; Spatial Behavior/*physiology |
Abstract |
Chicks learned to find food hidden under sawdust by ground-scratching in the central position of the floor of a closed arena. When tested inan arena of identical shape but a larger area, chicks searched at 2 different locations, one corresponding to the correct distance (i.e., center) in the smaller (training) arena and the other to the actual center of the test arena. When tested in an arena of the same shape but a smaller area, chicks searched in the center of it. These results suggest that chicks are able to encode information on the absolute and relative distance of the food from the walls of the arena. After training in the presence of a landmark located at the center of the arena, animals searched at the center even after the removal of the landmark. Marked changes in the height of the walls of the arena produced some displacement in searching behavior, suggesting that chicks used the angular size of the walls to estimate distances. |
Address |
Department of General Psychology, University of Padua, Italy |
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0097-7403 |
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PMID:11056887 |
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Equine Behaviour @ team @ |
Serial |
2774 |
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