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Author Biondi, L.M.; García, G.O.; Bó, M.S.; Vassallo, A.I. url  doi
openurl 
  Title Social Learning in the Caracara Chimango, Milvago chimango (Aves: Falconiformes): an Age Comparison Type (up) 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 Smith, J.E.; Van Horn, R.C.; Powning, K.S.; Cole, A.R.; Graham, K.E.; Memenis, S.K.; Holekamp, K.E. url  doi
openurl 
  Title Evolutionary forces favoring intragroup coalitions among spotted hyenas and other animals Type (up) Journal Article
  Year 2010 Publication Behavioral Ecology Abbreviated Journal Behav. Ecol.  
  Volume 21 Issue 2 Pages 284-303  
  Keywords  
  Abstract Coalitionary support in agonistic interactions represents cooperation because intervening in a fight is potentially costly to the donor of support but benefits the recipient. Here, we first review the characteristics of, and evolutionary forces favoring, intragroup coalitions in 49 species and find that patterns of intragroup coalition formation are remarkably similar between primates and nonprimates. We then test hypotheses suggesting kin selection, reciprocal altruism, and direct benefits as adaptive explanations for coalitionary interventions among adult female spotted hyenas (Crocuta crocuta) belonging to a large social group in Kenya. As predicted by kin selection theory, females supported close kin most often, and the density (connectedness) of cooperation networks increased with genetic relatedness. Nevertheless, kinship failed to protect females from coalitionary attacks. We found no evidence of enduring alliances based on reciprocal support among unrelated adult females. Instead, donors generally minimized costs to themselves, intervening most often during low-intensity fights and when feeding opportunities were unavailable. Females also gained direct benefits from directing coalitionary attacks toward subordinates. Finally, females monitored the number of dominant bystanders in the “audience” at fights and modified their level of cooperation based on this knowledge. Overall, hyenas made flexible decisions regarding whether or not to intervene in fights, modifying their tendency to cooperate based on multiple types of information about their immediate social and ecological environments. Taken together, these findings indicate that the combined evolutionary forces of kin selection and direct benefits derived from reinforcing the status quo drive coalitionary interventions among adult female spotted hyenas.  
  Address agonistic support, audience effect, cooperation network, direct benefits, kin selection * reciprocal altruism * review  
  Corporate Author Thesis  
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  Area Expedition Conference  
  Notes 10.1093/beheco/arp181 Approved no  
  Call Number Equine Behaviour @ team @ Serial 5285  
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Author Rogers, L.J. url  doi
openurl 
  Title Relevance of brain and behavioural lateralization to animal welfare Type (up) Journal Article
  Year 2010 Publication Applied Animal Behaviour Science Abbreviated Journal Appl. Anim. Behav. Sci.  
  Volume 127 Issue 1-2 Pages 1-11  
  Keywords Hemispheric specialization; Cognitive bias; Stress; Limb preference; Experience; Development  
  Abstract The left and right sides of the brain are specialised to process information in different ways and to control different categories of behaviour. Research on a range of species has shown that the left hemisphere controls well-established patterns of behaviour performed in non-stressful situations, whereas the right hemisphere responds to unexpected stimuli and controls escape and other emergency responses. The known functions of each hemisphere are summarised in this paper. Then it is hypothesised that stressed animals rely on predominant use of the right hemisphere, and that a bias to use the right or left hemisphere, respectively, may explain the behavioural differences between animals with a negative cognitive bias and those with a positive cognitive bias. In some species of primates it has been shown that the preferred limb used to pick up food when the animal is in a relaxed state reflects the dominant hemisphere and may be an accessible measure indicating susceptibility to stress and tendency towards positive versus negative cognitive bias. Hence, limb preference might be a useful measure of such tendencies in domesticated species. Some difficulties in determining a relevant measure of limb preference in non-primate species are mentioned, followed by the suggestion that eye preferences for viewing certain stimuli may be a useful measure in species with laterally placed eyes. Finally, effects of experience on the development of hemispheric dominance are discussed, leading to a suggestion that the welfare of domestic animals may be enhanced by ensuring development of left hemisphere dominance (e.g. by exposing chick embryos to light) and by shifting right to left hemisphere dominance in animals with negative cognitive bias.  
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  Series Editor Series Title Abbreviated Series Title  
  Series Volume Series Issue Edition  
  ISSN 0168-1591 ISBN Medium  
  Area Expedition Conference  
  Notes Approved no  
  Call Number Equine Behaviour @ team @ Serial 5296  
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Author Karenina, K.; Giljov, A.; Baranov, V.; Osipova, L.; Krasnova, V.; Malashichev, Y. url  doi
openurl 
  Title Visual Laterality of Calf–Mother Interactions in Wild Whales Type (up) Journal Article
  Year 2010 Publication PLoS ONE Abbreviated Journal PLoS ONE  
  Volume 5 Issue 11 Pages e13787  
  Keywords  
  Abstract Background

Behavioral laterality is known for a variety of vertebrate and invertebrate animals. Laterality in social interactions has been described for a wide range of species including humans. Although evidence and theoretical predictions indicate that in social species the degree of population level laterality is greater than in solitary ones, the origin of these unilateral biases is not fully understood. It is especially poorly studied in the wild animals. Little is known about the role, which laterality in social interactions plays in natural populations. A number of brain characteristics make cetaceans most suitable for investigation of lateralization in social contacts.

Methodology/Principal Findings

Observations were made on wild beluga whales (Delphinapterus leucas) in the greatest breeding aggregation in the White Sea. Here we show that young calves (in 29 individually identified and in over a hundred of individually not recognized mother-calf pairs) swim and rest significantly longer on a mother's right side. Further observations along with the data from other cetaceans indicate that found laterality is a result of the calves' preference to observe their mothers with the left eye, i.e., to analyze the information on a socially significant object in the right brain hemisphere.

Conclusions/Significance

Data from our and previous work on cetacean laterality suggest that basic brain lateralizations are expressed in the same way in cetaceans and other vertebrates. While the information on social partners and novel objects is analyzed in the right brain hemisphere, the control of feeding behavior is performed by the left brain hemisphere. Continuous unilateral visual contacts of calves to mothers with the left eye may influence social development of the young by activation of the contralateral (right) brain hemisphere, indicating a possible mechanism on how behavioral lateralization may influence species life and welfare. This hypothesis is supported by evidence from other vertebrates.
 
  Address  
  Corporate Author Thesis  
  Publisher Public Library of Science 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 5297  
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Author Wascher, C.A.F.; Fraser, O.N.; Kotrschal, K. url  doi
openurl 
  Title Heart Rate during Conflicts Predicts Post-Conflict Stress-Related Behavior in Greylag Geese Type (up) Journal Article
  Year 2010 Publication PLoS ONE Abbreviated Journal PLoS ONE  
  Volume 5 Issue 12 Pages e15751  
  Keywords  
  Abstract Background

Social stressors are known to be among the most potent stressors in group-living animals. This is not only manifested in individual physiology (heart rate, glucocorticoids), but also in how individuals behave directly after a conflict. Certain ‘stress-related behaviors’ such as autopreening, body shaking, scratching and vigilance have been suggested to indicate an individual's emotional state. Such behaviors may also alleviate stress, but the behavioral context and physiological basis of those behaviors is still poorly understood.

Methodology/Principal Findings

We recorded beat-to-beat heart rates (HR) of 22 greylag geese in response to agonistic encounters using fully implanted sensor-transmitter packages. Additionally, for 143 major events we analyzed the behavior shown by our focal animals in the first two minutes after an interaction. Our results show that the HR during encounters and characteristics of the interaction predicted the frequency and duration of behaviors shown after a conflict.

Conclusions/Significance

To our knowledge this is the first study to quantify the physiological and behavioral responses to single agonistic encounters and to link this to post conflict behavior. Our results demonstrate that ‘stress-related behaviors’ are flexibly modulated by the characteristics of the preceding aggressive interaction and reflect the individual's emotional strain, which is linked to autonomic arousal. We found no support for the stress-alleviating hypothesis, but we propose that stress-related behaviors may play a role in communication with other group members, particularly with pair-partners.
 
  Address  
  Corporate Author Thesis  
  Publisher Public Library of Science Place of Publication Editor  
  Language Summary Language Original Title  
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  Series Volume Series Issue Edition  
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  Area Expedition Conference  
  Notes Approved no  
  Call Number Equine Behaviour @ team @ Serial 5298  
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Author Seed, A.; Byrne, R. url  doi
openurl 
  Title Animal Tool-Use Type (up) Journal Article
  Year 2010 Publication Current Biology Abbreviated Journal Curr Biol  
  Volume 20 Issue 23 Pages R1032-R1039  
  Keywords  
  Abstract The sight of an animal making and using a tool captivates scientists and laymen alike, perhaps because it forces us to question some of our ideas about human uniqueness. Does the animal know how the tool works? Did it anticipate the need for the tool and make it in advance? To some, this fascination with tools seems arbitrary and anthropocentric; after all, animals engage in many other complex activities, like nest building, and we know that complex behaviour need not be cognitively demanding. But tool-using behaviour can also provide a powerful window into the minds of living animals, and help us to learn what capacities we share with them -- and what might have changed to allow for the incontrovertibly unique levels of technology shown by modern humans.  
  Address  
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  Series Editor Series Title Abbreviated Series Title  
  Series Volume Series Issue Edition  
  ISSN 0960-9822 ISBN Medium  
  Area Expedition Conference  
  Notes Approved no  
  Call Number Equine Behaviour @ team @ Serial 5318  
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Author Zenzinger, S. url  doi
openurl 
  Title Experimentelle Untersuchungen zur optischen Kommunikation bei im Zoo gehaltenen Schabracken- und Flachlandtapiren (Tapirus indicus und Tapirus terrestris) Type (up) Journal Article
  Year 2010 Publication Der Zoologische Garten Abbreviated Journal  
  Volume 79 Issue 4-5 Pages 162-174  
  Keywords Tapirus indicus; Tapirus terrestris; communication; optical stimuli; posters; white ear rims; key stimulus  
  Abstract Until now, unlike their relatives, rhinos and horses tapirs have received considerably less attention in studies about communication. Therefore, it was the aim of this study to test which stimuli contain optical information for tapirs. For this purpose, the reactions of tapirs on optical stimuli (posters with edited tapir silhouettes) were examined. Research visits took place at the zoos of Berlin, Dortmund, Heidelberg, Munich, Nuremberg and Osnabrück during the year 2006. A total of 23 individuals, thereof 8 (5.3) Malayan tapirs (Tapirus indicus) and 15 (5.10) Lowland tapirs (Tapirus terrestris) attended the experiment. The results of the optical test with variously intense edited tapir silhouettes speak for the importance of the white ear rims as a family specific key stimulus. But that effect could not be amplified by adding a greater extent of white to the silhouette. Tapirs of both species reacted most strongly to the normal tapir silhouette followed by a silhouette without proboscis.  
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  Series Editor Series Title Abbreviated Series Title  
  Series Volume Series Issue Edition  
  ISSN 0044-5169 ISBN Medium  
  Area Expedition Conference  
  Notes Approved no  
  Call Number Equine Behaviour @ team @ Serial 5321  
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Author Weisbecker, V.; Goswami, A. url  doi
openurl 
  Title Brain size, life history, and metabolism at the marsupial/placental dichotomy Type (up) Journal Article
  Year 2010 Publication Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America Abbreviated Journal Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.  
  Volume 107 Issue 37 Pages 16216-16221  
  Keywords  
  Abstract The evolution of mammalian brain size is directly linked with the evolution of the brain's unique structure and performance. Both maternal life history investment traits and basal metabolic rate (BMR) correlate with relative brain size, but current hypotheses regarding the details of these relationships are based largely on placental mammals. Using encephalization quotients, partial correlation analyses, and bivariate regressions relating brain size to maternal investment times and BMR, we provide a direct quantitative comparison of brain size evolution in marsupials and placentals, whose reproduction and metabolism differ extensively. Our results show that the misconception that marsupials are systematically smaller-brained than placentals is driven by the inclusion of one large-brained placental clade, Primates. Marsupial and placental brain size partial correlations differ in that marsupials lack a partial correlation of BMR with brain size. This contradicts hypotheses stating that the maintenance of relatively larger brains requires higher BMRs. We suggest that a positive BMR–brain size correlation is a placental trait related to the intimate physiological contact between mother and offspring during gestation. Marsupials instead achieve brain sizes comparable to placentals through extended lactation. Comparison with avian brain evolution suggests that placental brain size should be constrained due to placentals’ relative precociality, as has been hypothesized for precocial bird hatchlings. We propose that placentals circumvent this constraint because of their focus on gestation, as opposed to the marsupial emphasis on lactation. Marsupials represent a less constrained condition, demonstrating that hypotheses regarding placental brain size evolution cannot be generalized to all mammals.  
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  Area Expedition Conference  
  Notes Approved no  
  Call Number Equine Behaviour @ team @ Serial 5338  
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Author Stennett, C.R.; Strauss, R.E. url  doi
openurl 
  Title Behavioural lateralization in zebrafish and four related species of minnows (Osteichthyes: Cyprinidae) Type (up) Journal Article
  Year 2010 Publication Animal Behaviour. Abbreviated Journal Anim. Behav.  
  Volume 79 Issue 6 Pages 1339-1342  
  Keywords binary data; Cyprinidae; Danio rerio; fish; laterality; monocular test; motor bias; score test; zebrafish  
  Abstract Behavioural lateralization has been observed in many species of fishes during stimulus-specific tasks. However, one area that has been overlooked is the study of naïve side bias in motor behaviour of fishes in the absence of direct visual stimulus. To this end, we examined naïve side biases in motor behaviour in five species of minnows (Osteichthyes: Cyprinidae). Fifteen individuals of each species were subjected to a T-shaped test arena, with 40 randomized replicates per individual. We took advantage of rheotaxis by running a slow current of water through each arm of the test apparatus. Of the 75 individuals tested, 55 showed a rightward turning preference. The overall right-biased behaviour observed in these fishes in the absence of systematic stimulus strongly suggests that a stimulus-free control condition be included in the experimental design whenever plausible for studies of laterality in fishes and presumably in other organisms.  
  Address  
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  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 5358  
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Author Zucca, P.; Baciadonna, L.; Masci, S.; Mariscoli, M. url  doi
openurl 
  Title Illness as a source of variation of laterality in lions (Panthera leo) Type (up) Journal Article
  Year 2010 Publication Laterality Abbreviated Journal Laterality  
  Volume 16 Issue 3 Pages 356-366  
  Keywords Brain lateralisation; Illness; Iions; Panthera leo; Footedness  
  Abstract Brain asymmetry—i.e. the specialisation of each cerebral hemisphere for sensorimotor processing mechanisms and for specific cognitive functions—is widely distributed among vertebrates. Several factors, such as embryological manipulations, sex, age, and breeds, can influence the maintenance, strength, and direction of laterality within a certain vertebrate species. Brain lateralisation is a universal phenomenon characterising not only cerebral control of cognitive or emotion-related functions but also cerebral regulation of somatic processes, and its evolution is strongly influenced by social selection pressure. Diseases are well known to be a cost of sociality but their role in influencing behaviour has received very little attention. The present study investigates the influence of illness conditions as a source of variation on laterality in a social keystone vertebrate predator model, the lion. In a preliminary stage, the clinical conditions of 24 adult lions were assessed. The same animals were scored for forelimb preference when in the quadrupedal standing position. Lions show a marked forelimb preference with a population bias towards the use of the right forelimb. Illness conditions strongly influenced the strength of laterality bias, with a significant difference between clinically healthy and sick lions. According to these results, health conditions should be recognised as an important source of variation in brain lateralisation.  
  Address  
  Corporate Author Thesis  
  Publisher Psychology Press Place of Publication Editor  
  Language Summary Language Original Title  
  Series Editor Series Title Abbreviated Series Title  
  Series Volume Series Issue Edition  
  ISSN 1357-650x ISBN Medium  
  Area Expedition Conference  
  Notes Approved no  
  Call Number Equine Behaviour @ team @ Serial 5372  
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