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Custance, D., Whiten, A., & Fredman, T. (1999). Social learning of an artificial fruit task in capuchin monkeys (Cebus apella). J. Comp. Psychol., 113(1), 13–23.
Abstract: Social learning in 11 human-raised capuchin monkeys (Cebus apella) was investigated using an artificial fruit that was designed as an analogue of natural foraging problems faced by primates. Each subject observed a human model open each of 3 principal components on the fruit in 1 of 2 alternative ways (“morphs”). The capuchin monkeys reproduced, to differing extents, the alternative techniques used for opening 1 component of the task (poking vs. pulling while twisting out a pair of smooth plastic bolts) but not the other 2. From the subjects' actions on the bolt latch, independent coders could recognize which morph they had witnessed, and they observed a degree of matching to the demonstrator's act consistent with simple imitation or object movement reenactment (A learns from watching B how an object, or parts of an object, move). Thus, these capuchins were capable of more complex social learning than has been recently ascribed to monkeys. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved)
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Choleris, E., & Kavaliers, M. (1999). Social Learning in Animals: Sex Differences and Neurobiological Analysis. Pharmacol. Biochem. Behav., 64(4), 767–776.
Abstract: Social learning where an “individual's behavior is influenced by observation of, or interaction with, another animal or its products” has been extensively documented in a broad variety of species, including humans. Social learning occurs within the complex framework of an animal's social interactions that are markedly affected by factors such as dominance hierarchies, family bonds, age, and sex of the interacting individuals. Moreover, it is clear that social learning is influenced not only by important sexually dimorphic social constraints but also that it involves attention, motivational, and perceptual mechanisms, all of which exhibit substantial male-female differences. Although sex differences have been demonstrated in a wide range of cognitive and behavioral processes, investigations of male-female differences in social learning and its neurobiological substrates have been largely neglected. As such, sex differences in social learning and its neurobiological substrates merit increased attention. This review briefly considers various aspects of the study of social learning in mammals, and indicates where male-female differences have either been described, neglected and, or could have a potential impact. It also describes the results of neurobiological investigations of social learning and considers the relevance of these findings to other sexually dimorphic cognitive processes.
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Zentall, T. R. (1999). Support for a theory of memory for event duration must distinguish between test-trial ambiguity and actual memory loss. J Exp Anal Behav, 72(3), 467–472.
Abstract: Staddon and Higa's (1999) trace-strength theory of timing and memory for event duration can account for pigeons' bias to “choose short” when retention intervals are introduced and to “choose long” when, following training with a fixed retention interval, retention intervals are shortened. However, it does not account for the failure of pigeons to choose short when the intertrial interval is distinct from the retention interval. That finding suggests that stimulus generalization (or ambiguity) between the intertrial interval and the retention interval may result in an effect that has been attributed to memory loss. Such artifacts must be eliminated before a theory of memory for event duration can be adequately tested.
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Cameron, E. Z., Stafford, K. J., Linklater, W. L., & Veltman, C. J. (1999). Suckling behaviour does not measure milk intake in horses, Equus caballus. Anim. Behav., 57(3), 673–678.
Abstract: Studies of parental investment in mammals have frequently used suckling behaviour to estimate energy transfer from mother to offspring, and consequently to measure maternal input. Such studies assume that the more an offspring sucks, the more milk it will receive. This assumption has been questioned, and a review of the literature found little support for it. To test if suckling behaviour provided an accurate index of milk or energy intake we used a radioactive isotope technique to label the milk of thoroughbred mares and to measure milk transfer to foals. We found no significant linear relationship between usual measures of suckling behaviour and milk or energy intake. No behaviours associated with suckling nor with characteristics of mares and foals improved the relationship; only the number of butts associated with each suck episode even approached significance. If we had used suckling behaviour to test theories on differential maternal investment our conclusions would have been in error. For example, female foals tended to suck for longer than males did but there was no difference in the amount of milk transferred. Consequently, we show that measures of suckling behaviour do not adequately predict milk intake in the domestic horse and we suggest that conclusions about differential maternal investment in mammals based on suckling behaviour are likely to be in error. Copyright 1999 The Association for the Study of Animal Behaviour.
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Powell, D. M. (1999). Preliminary evaluation of porcine zona pellucida (PZP) immunocontraception for behavioral effects in feral horses (Equus caballus). J Appl Anim Welf Sci, 2(4), 321–335.
Abstract: Successful management of captive populations of wild animals requires effective control of reproduction. Contraception is one tool for controlling reproduction of animals in zoos; however, the options available to the animal manager are limited. Contraceptives vary in efficacy, reversibility, and side effects, and thus may not be suitable for widespread use. One consideration when selecting a contraceptive is its potential for side effects on behavior, especially given the fact that reproduction plays such a prominent role in the biology of any species. To date, there have been few evaluations of contraceptives for behavioral effects, and those that have been conducted have focused on hormone-based contraceptives. This study sought to evaluate a novel method of population control, immunocontraception, for behavioral effects in a population of feral horses. Porcine zona pellucida (PZP) immunocontraception prevents fertilization of ova and does not alter normal hormone secretion patterns. It therefore should leave the animal behaviorally intact in terms of reproductive behavior. The study examined the behavior of 43 sexually mature mares on Assateague Island during the 1997 breeding season and, with help from Earthwatch volunteers, collected observations over a 3-month period. The study found no significant differences between treated and untreated mares in general activity budget, aggression given or received, and spatial relationships relative to the stallion. These preliminary findings indicate that PZP contraception seems to have no acute behavioral effects on the behavior of individuals. The study findings also suggest that PZP could be a desirable and effective management tool for captive species in which social behavior plays an integral role in group dynamics. Analyses of group level effects and population level effects are continuing.
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Goodwin, D. (1999). The importance of ethology in understanding the behaviour of the horse. Equine Veterinary Journal, 31(S28), 15–19.
Abstract: Summary Domestication has provided the horse with food, shelter, veterinary care and protection, allowing individuals an increased chance of survival. However, the restriction of movement, limited breeding opportunities and a requirement to expend energy, for the benefit of another species, conflict with the evolutionary processes which shaped the behaviour of its predecessors. The behaviour of the horse is defined by its niche as a social prey species but many of the traits which ensured the survival of its ancestors are difficult to accommodate in the domestic environment. There has been a long association between horses and man and many features of equine behaviour suggest a predisposition to interspecific cooperation. However, the importance of dominance in human understanding of social systems has tended to overemphasise its importance in the human-horse relationship. The evolving horse-human relationship from predation to companionship, has resulted in serial conflicts of interest for equine and human participants. Only by understanding the nature and origin of these conflicts can ethologists encourage equine management practices which minimise deleterious effects on the behaviour of the horse.
Keywords: horse; behaviour; domestication; interspecific communication
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Hare, B., & Tomasello, M. (1999). Domestic Dogs (Canis familiaris) Use Human and Conspecific Social Cues to Locate Hidden Food. J. Comp. Psychol., 113(2), 173–177.
Abstract: Ten domestic dogs (Canis familiaris) of different breeds and ages were exposed to 2 different social cues indicating the location of hidden food, each provided by both a human informant and a conspecific informant (for a total of 4 different social cues). For the local enhancement cue, the informant approached the location where food was hidden and then stayed beside it. For the gaze and point cue, the informant stood equidistant between 2 hiding locations and bodily oriented and gazed toward the 1 in which food was hidden (the human informant also pointed). Eight of the 10 subjects, including the one 6-month-old juvenile, were above chance with 2 or more cues. Results are discussed in terms of the phylogenetic and ontogenetic processes by means of which dogs come to use social cues to locate food.
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McGrew, W., & Marchant, L. (1999). Laterality of hand use pays off in foraging success for wild chimpanzees. Primates, 40(3), 509–513.
Abstract: The aim of this study was to see if behavioral lateralization in hand use benefits a lateralized organism in nature. We recorded wild chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes schweinfurthii) at Gombe, Tanzania, fishing for termites (Macrotermes spp.), an extractive foraging task using elementary technology. We compared individual apes who were completely lateralized, using only one hand or the other for the task, versus those who were incompletely lateralized, using either hand. Exclusively lateralized individuals were more efficient, that is, gathered more prey per unit effort, but were no different in success or error rate from incompletely lateralized apes. This is the first demonstration of a payoff to laterality of behavioral function in primates in conditions of ecological validity.
Keywords: Biomedical and Life Sciences
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McDonnell, S. (1999). Understanding horse behavior. Your guide to horse health care and management. Lexington, KY 40544-4038: Blood-Horse Inc.
Abstract: The author has conducted much research on equine behaviour, and here presents her findings in a form suitable for owners of horses. Common behavioural problems are mentioned.
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Lestel, D., & Grundmann, E. (1999). Tools, techniques and animals: the role of mediations of actions in the dynamics of social behaviours. Social Science Information, 38(3), 367–407.
Abstract: The definition of tool proposed by Beck (1980) is still the one referred to in ethology when discussing the question of tool-use in animals, and its pertinence is rarely questioned. However, observations on technical behaviours in animals have multiplied over the last 20 years, and these have profoundly altered our earlier representations. In the present article, we show that Beck's definition is insufficient and that it does not, in fact, work. More generally, we replace a theory of tools with a theory of mediations of actions to account for technical behaviours in animals. We show that a culturally overcharged notion such as that of tool hinders our perception of the diversity and the complexity of tool uses. By speaking of mediations of actions and not of tools, we eliminate the problem of first defining the pertinent object (is it a tool or not?) and are free to concentrate on the means by which the animal externalizes its actions and thus procures greater means of acting on these within a group. In so doing, we prepare the ground for a genuine evolutionary understanding of the dynamics of actions within a given animal population. Whereas, with a few exceptions, ethologists have always separated the question of techniques from that of social behaviour, we emphasize the importance of an ecology of mediations of actions for understanding the structure and dynamics of animal societies, in particular by attempting to rethink such notions as “culture” in the perspective of a general analysis of mediations of actions.
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