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Goodwin, D. (2007). Equine learning behaviour: What we know, what we don't and future research priorities. Behav. Process., 76, 17–19.
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Linklater, W. L. (2007). Equine learning in a wider context--Opportunities for integrative pluralism. Behav. Process., 76, 53–56.
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Lefebvre, L. (1995). Ecological correlates of social learning: problems and solutions for the comparative method. Behav. Process., 35(1-3), 163–171.
Abstract: Interspecific variation in learning and cognition is often accounted for by adaptive specialization, an ecological framework where variation between species in the environmental problems they face is thought to select for quantitatively and/or qualitatively different abilities. Adaptive specialization theory relies on the comparative method for testing its hypotheses and assumes a naturally selected basis for the predicted differences. This review examines social learning as a specialization to group-living and scramble feeding competition. It points out one important problem with current studies in the area, the lack of quantitative controls for confounding variables that may cause type 1 or 2 error in comparative tests. A linear regression technique is proposed to measure and remove interspecific differences on control tests for which there is no predicted adaptive specialization; as in other areas of comparative biology, the adaptive prediction is then made on the residual deviation from the regression of these confounding variables. Examples are given from research on opportunistic Columbids, the group-living feral pigeon Columbia livia, and the territorial Zenaida dove, Zenaida aurita.
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Macuda, T., & Timney, B. (1999). Luminance and chromatic discrimination in the horse (Equus caballus). Behav. Process., 44(3), 301–307.
Abstract: Equine colour vision was measured under conditions that minimised the possibility of animals using brightness cues to make chromatic discriminations. In a two-stage study, we first obtained luminance discrimination functions for achromatic targets then tested for chromatic discrimination over a range of target luminances. Horses were trained on a two-choice discrimination task. The positive stimulus was varied in luminance and/or colour using neutral density and broad band colour filters. The negative stimulus appeared as a uniform grey. In the brightness discrimination task, the horses performed well at large luminance differences but their percentage of correct responses declined to near chance levels at differences of less than 0.2 log units. In addition, a decrement in performance was noted at luminance differences of less than 0.2 log units for green and yellow chromatic discrimination functions, suggesting that horses cannot easily discriminate yellow and green from grey. However, the chromatic discrimination functions for red and blue showed that animals performed very well across the full range of target luminances. These results suggest that horses are at least dichromats.
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Murphy, J., & Arkins, S. (2007). Synthesizing what we know of equine learning behaviour. Behav. Process., 76, 57–60.
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Kraak, S. B. M. (1996). `Copying mate choice': Which phenomena deserve this term? Behav. Process., 36(1), 99–102.
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Levin, L. E. (1996). Passage order through different pathways in groups of schooling fish, and the diversified leadership hypothesis. Behav. Process., 37(1), 1–8.
Abstract: The diversified leadership hypothesis proposes that different individuals within a school of fish act as leaders in different circumstances. This `circumstantial leadership' results from inter-individual behavioral variability and a `cohesion-dispersion' tendency modulated by `failure-success' contingencies. The hypothesis predicts that when offered different pathways to escape the restriction of their swimming space, individuals within a group of fish will show 1. (a) consistent passage orders in each pathway, but2. (b) different passage orders in different pathways. Using an avoidance paddle and three different groups of fish (Aphyocharax erithrurus) the results confirmed prediction 1. (a) while prediction2. (b) was verified only in one group.
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Barnard, C. J., & Luo, N. (2002). Acquisition of dominance status affects maze learning in mice. Behav. Process., 60(1), 53–59.
Abstract: Learning is likely to be costly and thus subject to trade-off with other components of life history. An obvious prediction, therefore, is that investment in learning, and thus learning performance, will vary with individual life history strategy and the reproductive value of the learning outcome. We tested this idea in the context of social dominance in male laboratory mice, using a simple radial maze paradigm to compare the ability of high- and low-ranking male mice to track changing food location. We tested animals in randomly selected pairs before and after establishing aggressive rank relationships to distinguish intrinsic differences in learning ability from those attributable to acquiring high or low rank. There was no difference in learning between later dominants and subordinates prior to establishing rank relationships. After pairing, however, dominants showed a significantly greater percentage of correct responses, with the difference being greatest earlier in a sequence of trials. The percentage of correct responses also increased with the amount of aggression initiated during pairing. The results thus appeared to reflect a state-dependent change in learning associated with the aggressive social relationships formed during pairing.
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Cloutier, S., Newberry, R. C., & Honda, K. (2004). Comparison of social ranks based on worm-running and aggressive behaviour in young domestic fowl. Behav. Process., 65(1), 79–86.
Abstract: Worm-running is behaviour in which a chick runs carrying a worm-like object while flock mates follow and attempt to grab the object from its beak. We hypothesised that social ranks based on worm-running frequency are stable over time and are positively correlated with social ranks based on success in aggressive interactions when older. At 8-12 days of age, we scored worm-running in 17 groups of 12 female White Leghorn chicks during three 10-min tests. Based on instantaneous scans at 5-s intervals, the bird carrying the `worm' most often was placed in rank one and so on down the rank order. These tests were repeated at 68-70 days of age. An aggression index for each bird was calculated as the number of aggressive acts given, divided by the number given and received, during three 1-h observation periods when the birds were 68-70 days. Ranks obtained in worm-running tests were positively correlated over the two age periods (P<0.05) but were not correlated with ranks based on the aggression index (P>0.05). Our results indicate that worm-running ranks are not predictive of success in aggressive interactions. Instead, worm-running fits some criteria for play.
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Dunbar, R. I. M., McAdam, M. R., & O'connell, S. (2005). Mental rehearsal in great apes (Pan troglodytes and Pongo pygmaeus) and children. Behav. Process., 69(3), 323–330.
Abstract: The ability to rehearse possible future courses of action in the mind is an important feature of advanced social cognition in humans, and the “social brain” hypothesis implies that it might also be a feature of primate social cognition. We tested two chimpanzees, six orangutans and 63 children aged 3-7 years on a set of four puzzle boxes, half of which were presented with an opportunity to observe the box before being allowed to open it (“prior view”), the others being given without an opportunity to examine the boxes before handling them (“no prior view”). When learning effects are partialled out, puzzle boxes in the “prior view” condition were opened significantly faster than boxes given in the “no prior view” condition by the children, but not by either of the great apes. The three species differ significantly in the speed with which they opened boxes in the “no prior view” condition. The three species' performance on this task was a function of relative frontal lobe volume, suggesting that it may be possible to identify quantitative neuropsychological differences between species.
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