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Trillmich, F., & Rehling, A. (2006). Animal Communication: Parent-Offspring. In Keith Brown (Ed.), Encyclopedia of Language & Linguistics (pp. 284–288). Oxford: Elsevier.
Abstract: Parent-offspring communication has evolved under strong selection to guarantee that the valuable resource of parental care is expended efficiently on raising offspring. To ensure allocation of parental care to their own offspring, individual recognition becomes established in higher vertebrates when the young become mobile at a time when a nest site can no longer provide a safe cue to recognition. Such recognition needs to be established by rapid, sometimes imprinting-like, processes in animals producing precocial offspring. In parents, offering strategies that stimulate feeding and entice offspring to approach the right site have evolved. Such parental signals can be olfactory, acoustic, or visual. In offspring, begging strategies involve shuffling for the best place to obtain food – be this the most productive teat or the best position in the nest. This involves signals that make the offspring particularly obvious to the parent. Parents often feed young according to their signaling intensity but may also show favoritism for weaker offspring. Offspring signals also serve to communicate the continuing presence of the young and may thereby maintain brood-care behavior in parents. Internal processes in parents may end parental care irrespective of further signaling by offspring, thus ensuring that offspring cannot manipulate parents into providing substantially more care than is optimal for their own fitness.
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Proops, L., McComb, K., & Reby, D. (2008). Cross-modal individual vocal recognition in the domestic horse. In IESM 2008.
Abstract: Horses fulfill many of the criteria for a species in which it would be adaptive to be capable of individual recognition: they are highly social, form strong and long lasting bonds, their affiliations are rarely kin based, they have a fission-fusion social structure and they possess inter and intra-group dominance hierarchies.
We used a novel cross-modal, expectancy violation paradigm to provide the first systematic evidence that a non-human animal – the domestic horse- is capable of cross modal recognition. We believe this paradigm could provide an ideal way to study individual recognition across a wide range of species.
For full published details see: Proops L, McComb K, Reby D (2009) Cross-modal individual recognition in domestic horses (Equus caballus). Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 106: 947-951.
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Proops, L., McComb, K., & Reby, D. (2008). Horse-human interactions: Attention attribution and the use of human cues by domestic horses (Equus caballus). In IESM 2008.
Abstract: Recent research has shown that domestic dogs are particularly good at reading human attentional cues, often outperforming chimpanzees and hand reared wolves [1, 2]. It has been suggested that the close evolutionary relationship between humans and dogs has led to the development of this ability, however very few other species have been studied [3]. We tested the ability of 24 domestic horses to discriminate between an attentive and inattentive person when choosing whom to approach for food. While the attentive person faced forwards, the inattentive person either stood with their body turned 180° away from the subject (body orientation condition), stood with their body facing forwards but their head facing away (head orientation condition) or stood facing forwards but with their eyes closed (eyes closed condition). A fourth, mixed condition was included where the attentive person stood with their body facing away from the subjects but their head turned towards the subject while the inattentive person stood with their body facing the subject but their head turned away. Horses chose the attentive person significantly more often using the body cue (n = 24, k = 19, p = 0.003), the head cue (n = 24, k = 18, p = 0.011), and the eye cue (n = 24, k = 19, p = 0.003) but not the mixed cue (n = 24, k = 13, p = 0.42). In an additional pilot study, horses were tested in an object choice task. A human experimenter cued one of two buckets by either tapping the bucket (tap condition), orienting their body towards the bucket and pointing (body and point condition), pointing while facing forwards (point condition) or orienting their body towards the bucket (body condition). If the subjects chose the correct bucket they were rewarded. Subjects were able to use the tap cue (n = 31, k = 21, p = 0.035), body + point cue (n= 31, k = 21, p = 0.035) and the point cue (n = 30, k = 21, p = 0.021) but not the body cue (n = 31, k = 11, p = 0.076). These results taken together suggest that domestic horses are also very sensitive to human attentional cues, including gaze.
Keywords:
social cognition, animal-human interaction, horses, attention attribution, domestication
1. Hare, B., Brown, M., Williamson, C., and Tomasello, M. (2002). The domestication of social cognition in dogs. Science 298, 1634-1636.
2. Gacsi, M., Miklosi, A., Varga, O., Topal, J., and Csanyi, V. (2004). Are readers of our face readers of our minds` Dogs (Canis familiaris) show situation-dependent recognition of human’s attention. Animal Cognition 7, 144-153.
3. Hare, B., and Tomasello, M. (2005). Human-like social skills in dogs? Trends Cogn. Sci. 9, 439-444.
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Hall, C., Rigg, V., Truswell, M., & Owen, H. (2012). Picture recognition of con-specifics and facial expression in the horse (Equus caballus). In K. Krueger (Ed.), Proceedings of the 2. International Equine Science Meeting (Vol. in press). Wald: Xenophon Publishing.
Abstract: The management of the domestic horse often requires them to be kept in isolation from con-specifics. Installing a picture of a horse (generally head and neck view) with a view to providing surrogate companionship has been shown to reduce the negative impact of this isolation. This study aimed firstly to compare the spontaneous response of horses (N=10) to a 2-D image of a horse’s face (FP) with their response to a comparable abstract 2-D image (AP). Secondly, the spontaneous response of horses (N=20) to a 2-D image of a horse’s face with the ears forward (PFP positive) was compared with the response to a 2-D image of a horse’s face with the ears back (NFP negative). The posters were A1 sized and displayed in the horse’s own stable. In study 1, one poster was displayed for 5 minutes and the horse’s behaviour video-recorded. This was removed and the second poster was displayed for 5 minutes and the behaviour video-recorded. FP was displayed first for 5 of the horses and AP displayed first for the other 5. The video footage was observed and the behaviour of the horses and number of times they touched the poster recorded. For the purpose of identifying the area of the poster that was touched by the horse it was divided into 4 equal quarters (TL, TR, BL, BR). In FP the nose of the horse in the 2-D image was located in BL, eyes and ears in TL, chest and lower neck in BR and upper neck in TR. In AP each area contained similar but unique abstract patterns of comparable colour to FP. Differences in behaviour were found according to which poster was displayed. FP was touched significantly more than AP (p=0.001) and was looked at more often (p=0.008). With FP the horses spent significantly longer with their ears forward (p=0.008) and licking and chewing (p=0.016). When the number of touches per poster area was compared (FP and AP) a significant difference was found in the number of times that BL (nose) and BR (chest/lower neck) were touched (p=0.011). Both areas were touched more frequently on FP, with BL being touched the most. In study 2 the same experimental protocol was used to compare responses to positive (PFP) or negative (NFP) 2-D images of a horse’s face (same horse in both PFP and NFP). Again, differences in behaviour were found in response to the two posters. PFP was touched significantly more than NFP (p=0.002) and on both posters the area BL (nose) was touched more frequently than the other areas (PFP: p=0.02, NFP: p=0.01). More ears back behaviour (p<0.001) and more ear locked on behaviour (p=0.008) was shown with NFP. The results of these studies indicate that horses can recognize 2-D images as con-specifics as well as responding to differences in facial expression. There is now the potential for further investigation into the importance of other visual cues in recognition and social interaction as well as the application of findings to enhance equine welfare.
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Owen, H., Hall, C., Hallam, S., & Smith, E. (2012). The use of GPS to measure feeding behaviour and activity patterns in the horse (Equus caballus). In K. Krueger (Ed.), Proceedings of the 2. International Equine Science Meeting (Vol. in press). Wald: Xenophon Publishing.
Abstract: The global positioning system (GPS) has been used to record activity and monitor habitat use in many animal species. In the horse (Equus caballus) the monitoring of activity and feeding patterns has been used to assess the impact of environmental factors on behaviour and welfare. In free-ranging animals GPS can provide such information but the accuracy and reliability of these devices has yet to be confirmed. The aim of this study was: 1) to compare the results of visual observation with GPS recordings of the horse’s head and neck position (head up (HU) and down (HD)) used to quantify time spent grazing; 2) to test the use of GPS collars to monitor activity patterns where distance, speed and location paths were recorded. In both studies two animals were fitted with Lotek GPS 3300S collars (with integrated GPS data logger and removable battery pack) round the top of the neck. In study 1 two horses were fitted with collars and turned loose into a 20x40m sand arena for 45 minutes. Feed balls and hay were provided (in nets and on the ground) to encourage movement and feeding behaviour for comparison using the two methods (observation from digital video recordings and GPS). HD was recorded by the GPS collars for a significantly longer time (interpreted as feeding/grazing time) than that recorded by observation (p=0.004). However when the visual observation was split into HU, HD and also head in mid-way position (HMW), where the nose of the horse was level or just above the chest, then no difference between the collar (HU and HD) and visual observation for (HU and HD+HMW) was found. It is likely that when in HMW the GPS collar may not be sufficiently angled to trigger the sensor to record HU or the collar may move on the neck. Conclusions relating to time spent feeding should be treated with caution. In study 2, the collars were fitted to two ponies with access to 2.02 hectares of lowland grazing. Activity (distance travelled and speed) and location was recorded for 2 days. The total distance travelled by the ponies in 24 hours (2.84km) and their average speed (4.04m/minute) was calculated and showed no significant difference between day and night. The total area was split into four equal segments and there was no significant difference in the time the ponies spent in each area although they were found to move at slower speeds and stand for longer in some areas. Movement paths could be identified by inputting the GPS collar data into ArcGIS and viewed on Google Maps. There was a high level of comparability observed between the two ponies confirming behavioural synchronicity. As in other species, the use of GPS collars to monitor the movement and location of horses/ponies was found to be effective, but data relating to head position did not provide a reliable means of recording the time spent feeding.
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Gabor, V., & Gerken, M. (2015). Shetland ponies (Equus caballus) show quantity discrimination. In , & K. Krueger (Ed.), Proceedings of the 3. International Equine Science Meeting. Wald: Xenophon Publishing.
Abstract: The complex housing environment and the close contact between humans and horses in equine sports place high demands on the learning capacity of horses. To date only limited information is available on the learning ability of the horse including higher order cognition. A type of higher order cognition is to perceive and discriminate quantities. Several mammals and birds have shown to be capable of discriminating objects due to their quantity (Brannon and Roitman, 2003). With regard to horses, there are only few studies available concerning their numerosity judgment (Uller and Lewis, 2009) and this ability is discussed controversially (Henselek et al, 2012). Possibly, the legacy of ‘‘Clever Hans’’ overshadowed further research on numerical capacity in horses, a horse to whom several psychologists incorrectly attributed the capacity of symbolic calculation (Pfungst, 1907; Rosenthal, 1965). In the present study we wanted to show whether Shetland ponies are able to transfer a previously learned concept of sameness to a numerosity judgment. The base of the test design was a “matching to sample” task, where the ponies had learned to relate abstract symbols to another which were presented on a LCD screen. Three Shetland ponies, which previously solved the matching to sample task, were tested in two test phases. In the first test phase different quantities of dots were presented (1 vs. 2; 2 vs. 3; 3 vs. 4; 4 vs. 5). To exclude discrimination due to the shape of the stimuli, the dots were varied in size and arrangement. The stimuli were presented in a triangular arrangement on the LCD screen; the sample stimulus was presented in the middle above and the discrimination stimuli in the two lower corners (S+ and S-). The pony received a food reward, by choosing the positive stimulus (S+). When the negative stimulus (S-) was chosen, the pony entered the next trial. Each learning session consisted of 20 decision trials. To investigate whether the numerosity judgment was transferable to mixed geometrical symbols (tri-, rectangle, rhomb, dot and cross) a second test phase was designed. All of the three Shetland ponies met the learning criterion of the first test phase (80% correct responses in two consecutive sessions) within the first eight sessions. One pony could transfer all judgments to the mixed symbols (up to 4 vs. 5), another pony up to 3 vs. 5 and the third on the level 2 vs. 3. These are the first reported findings that ponies are able to discriminate up to five objects. The numerosity judgment seemed to be easier for the ponies when homogenous objects were presented, than in the case of heterogeneous symbols. The reaction of the ponies occurred within few seconds, suggesting that the animals used subitizing for their numerosity judgment.
Keywords:
Cognition, numerical capacity, numerosity judgment, Shetland ponys
References:
Brannon E, Roitman J (2003) Nonverbal representations of time and number in animals and human infants. In: Meck WH (ed) Functional and neural mechanisms of interval timing. CRC Press, Boca Raton, pp 143–182
Henselek Y, Fischer J, Schloegl C (2012) Does the stimulus type influence horses’ performance in a quantity discrimination task? Front Psychol 3:504
Pfungst O (1907) Der Kluge Hans. Ein Beitrag zur nicht-verbalen Kommunikation. 3rd edn. (reprint of the original 1983) Frankfurter Fachbuchhandlung für Psychologie, Frankfurt
Rosenthal R (1965) Clever Hans: the horse of Mr. Von Osten. Holt, Rinehart and Winston, New York
Uller C, Lewis J (2009) Horses (Equus caballus) select the greater of two quantities in small numerical sets. Anim Cogn 12:733–738
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Krueger, K. (Ed.). (2008). Proceedings of the International Equine Science Meeting 2008. Wald: Xenophon Verlag.
Abstract: Target group: Biologists, Psychologists, Veterinarians and Professionals
Meeting target: Because the last international meeting on Equine Science took place a couple years ago, there is an urgent need for equine scientists to exchange scientific knowledge, coordinate research provide knowledge for practical application, and discus research results among themselves and with professionals who work with horses. Additionally, dialog concerning the coordination of the study “Equitation Science” in Europe is urgently needed. Coordination and cooperation shall arise from the meeting, enrich the research, and advance the application of scientific knowledge for the horses` welfare.
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Griffin, D. R. (2001). Animals know more than we used to think (Vol. 98).
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Paukner, A., Anderson, J. R., & Fujita, K. (2006). Redundant food searches by capuchin monkeys (Cebus apella): a failure of metacognition? Anim. Cogn., 9(2), 110–117.
Abstract: This study investigated capuchin monkeys' understanding of their own visual search behavior as a means to gather information. Five monkeys were presented with three tubes that could be visually searched to determine the location of a bait. The bait's visibility was experimentally manipulated, and the monkeys' spontaneous visual searches before tube selection were analyzed. In Experiment 1, three monkeys selected the baited tube significantly above chance; however, the monkeys also searched transparent tubes. In Experiment 2, a bent tube in which food was never visible was introduced. When the bent tube was baited, the monkeys failed to deduce the bait location and responded randomly. They also continued to look into the bent tube despite not gaining any pertinent information from it. The capuchin monkeys' behavior contrasts with the efficient employment of visual search behavior reported in humans, apes and macaques. This difference is consistent with species-related variations in metacognitive abilities, although other explanations are also possible.
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Palmer, M. E., Calve, M. R., & Adamo, S. A. (2006). Response of female cuttlefish Sepia officinalis (Cephalopoda) to mirrors and conspecifics: evidence for signaling in female cuttlefish. Anim. Cogn., 9(2), 151–155.
Abstract: Cuttlefish have a large repertoire of body patterns that are used for camouflage and interspecific signaling. Intraspecific signaling by male cuttlefish has been well documented but studies on signaling by females are lacking. We found that females displayed a newly described body pattern termed Splotch toward their mirror image and female conspecifics, but not to males, prey or inanimate objects. Female cuttlefish may use the Splotch body pattern as an intraspecific signal, possibly to reduce agonistic interactions. The ability of females to produce a consistent body pattern in response to conspecifics and mirrors suggests that they can recognize same-sex conspecifics using visual cues, despite the lack of sexual dimorphism visible to human observers.
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