1
|
Dorschner J, Hernandez Salazar LT, Laska M. Serial visual reversal learning in captive black-handed spider monkeys, Ateles geoffroyi. Anim Cogn 2024; 27:56. [PMID: 39136822 PMCID: PMC11322210 DOI: 10.1007/s10071-024-01897-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/22/2024] [Accepted: 07/31/2024] [Indexed: 08/16/2024]
Abstract
Recent research suggests that socio-ecological factors such as dietary specialization and social complexity may be drivers of advanced cognitive skills among primates. Therefore, we assessed the ability of 12 black-handed spider monkeys (Ateles geoffroyi), a highly frugivorous platyrrhine primate with strong fission-fusion dynamics, to succeed in a serial visual reversal learning task. Using a two-alternative choice paradigm we first trained the animals to reliably choose a rewarded visual stimulus over a non-rewarded one. Upon reaching a pre-set learning criterion we then switched the reward values of the two stimuli and assessed if and how quickly the animals learned to reverse their choices, again to a pre-set learning criterion. This stimulus reversal procedure was then continued for a total of 80 sessions of 10 trials each. We found that the spider monkeys quickly learned to reliably discriminate between two simultaneously presented visual stimuli, that they succeeded in a visual reversal learning task, and that they displayed an increase in learning speed across consecutive reversals, suggesting that they are capable of serial reversal learning-set formation with visual cues. The fastest-learning individual completed five reversals within the 80 sessions. The spider monkeys outperformed most other primate and nonprimate mammal species tested so far on this type of cognitive task, including chimpanzees, with regard to their learning speed in both the initial learning task and in the first reversal task, suggesting a high degree of behavioral flexibility and inhibitory control. Our findings support the notion that socio-ecological factors such as dietary specialization and social complexity foster advanced cognitive skills in primates.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Jules Dorschner
- IFM Biology, Linköping University, Linköping, SE-581 83, Sweden
| | | | - Matthias Laska
- IFM Biology, Linköping University, Linköping, SE-581 83, Sweden.
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Dongre P, Lanté G, Cantat M, Canteloup C, van de Waal E. Role of immigrant males and muzzle contacts in the uptake of a novel food by wild vervet monkeys. eLife 2024; 13:e76486. [PMID: 38192204 PMCID: PMC10776085 DOI: 10.7554/elife.76486] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/20/2021] [Accepted: 12/13/2023] [Indexed: 01/10/2024] Open
Abstract
The entry into and uptake of information in social groups is critical for behavioral adaptation by long-lived species in rapidly changing environments. We exposed five groups of wild vervet monkeys to a novel food to investigate the innovation of processing and consuming it. We report that immigrant males innovated in two groups, and an infant innovated in one group. In two other groups, immigrant males imported the innovation from their previous groups. We compared uptake between groups with respect to the initial innovator to examine the extent to which dispersing males could introduce an innovation into groups. Uptake of the novel food was faster in groups where immigrant males ate first rather than the infants. Younger individuals were more likely overall, and faster, to subsequently acquire the novel food. We also investigated the role of muzzle contact behavior in information seeking around the novel food. Muzzle contacts decreased in frequency over repeated exposures to the novel food. Muzzle contacts were initiated the most by naïve individuals, high rankers, and juveniles; and were targeted most towards knowledgeable individuals and high rankers, and the least towards infants. We highlight the potential importance of dispersers in rapidly exploiting novel resources among populations.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Pooja Dongre
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, University of LausanneLausanneSwitzerland
- Inkawu Vervet Project, Mawana Game ReserveKwaZulu NatalSouth Africa
| | - Gaëlle Lanté
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, University of LausanneLausanneSwitzerland
- University of PoitiersPoitiersFrance
| | - Mathieu Cantat
- Inkawu Vervet Project, Mawana Game ReserveKwaZulu NatalSouth Africa
| | - Charlotte Canteloup
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, University of LausanneLausanneSwitzerland
- Inkawu Vervet Project, Mawana Game ReserveKwaZulu NatalSouth Africa
- Laboratory of Cognitive & Adaptive Neurosciences, CNRS - UMR 7364, University of StrasbourgStrasbourgFrance
| | - Erica van de Waal
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, University of LausanneLausanneSwitzerland
- Inkawu Vervet Project, Mawana Game ReserveKwaZulu NatalSouth Africa
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Congratulations to Animal Cognition on its 50th birthday! Some thoughts on the last 50 years of animal cognition research. Anim Cogn 2023; 26:13-23. [PMID: 36264405 DOI: 10.1007/s10071-022-01706-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/02/2022] [Revised: 09/11/2022] [Accepted: 10/14/2022] [Indexed: 02/01/2023]
Abstract
In this article, the author reflects on some of the key issues that have arisen in comparative cognition and the role and impact of the journal Animal Cognition through its first 25 years by pretending to look back at this period from the year 2047. Successes within comparative cognition are described and the role that Animal Cognition has played in the growth of comparative cognition are discussed. Concerns are presented about issues that affect the opportunities that researchers have to work with nonhuman species and to produce good comparative cognitive science. Prescriptions for what the author hopes will happen next also are offered all in the lens of a prospectively imagined retrospective on this field.
Collapse
|
4
|
The Benefits and Challenges of Conducting Primate Research in Different Settings. Animals (Basel) 2022; 13:ani13010133. [PMID: 36611742 PMCID: PMC9817835 DOI: 10.3390/ani13010133] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/31/2022] [Revised: 12/07/2022] [Accepted: 12/24/2022] [Indexed: 12/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Internationally, primate research takes place in laboratories, zoos, sanctuaries, and the wild. All of these settings present unique advantages and challenges in terms of methodology, translatability, animal welfare, and ethics. In this novel commentary, we explore the scientific and ethical benefits and drawbacks of conducting non-invasive psychological research with primates in each setting. We also suggest ways to overcome some of the barriers. We argue that while there may be greater experimental control in laboratory-based research, settings that more closely mirror primates' natural habitats are generally better suited to meet their specialized needs. More naturalistic research settings, including field studies, may also circumvent some ethical concerns associated with research in captivity, and yield more ecologically valid data.
Collapse
|
5
|
Horn L, Cimarelli G, Boucherie PH, Šlipogor V, Bugnyar T. Beyond the dichotomy between field and lab — the importance of studying cognition in context. Curr Opin Behav Sci 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.cobeha.2022.101172] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
|
6
|
Sarkar R, Bhadra A. How do animals navigate the urban jungle? A review of cognition in urban-adapted animals. Curr Opin Behav Sci 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.cobeha.2022.101177] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
|
7
|
Loyant L, Waller BM, Micheletta J, Joly M. Heterogeneity of performances in several inhibitory control tasks: male rhesus macaques are more easily distracted than females. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2021; 8:211564. [PMID: 34849250 PMCID: PMC8611350 DOI: 10.1098/rsos.211564] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/30/2021] [Accepted: 10/15/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Inhibitory control, the ability to override a dominant response, is crucial in many aspects of everyday life. In animal studies, striking individual variations are often largely ignored and their causes rarely considered. Hence, our aims were to systematically investigate individual variability in inhibitory control, to replicate the most common causes of individual variation (age, sex and rank) and to determine if these factors had a consistent effect on three main components of inhibitory control (inhibition of a distraction, inhibition of an action, inhibition of a cognitive set). We tested 21 rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta) in a battery of validated touchscreen tasks. We first found individual variations in all inhibitory control performances. We then demonstrated that males had poorer performances to inhibit a distraction and that middle-aged individuals exhibited poorer performance in the inhibition of a cognitive set. Hence, the factors of age and sex were not consistently associated with the main components of inhibitory control, suggesting a multi-faceted structure. The rank of the subjects did not influence any inhibitory control performances. This study adopts a novel approach for animal behaviour studies and gives new insight into the individual variability of inhibitory control which is crucial to understand its evolutionary underpinnings.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Louise Loyant
- Centre for Comparative and Evolutionary Psychology, Department of Psychology, University of Portsmouth, King Henry Building, Portsmouth PO1 2DY, UK
| | - Bridget M. Waller
- Department of Psychology, Nottingham Trent University, Nottingham, UK
| | - Jérôme Micheletta
- Centre for Comparative and Evolutionary Psychology, Department of Psychology, University of Portsmouth, King Henry Building, Portsmouth PO1 2DY, UK
| | - Marine Joly
- Centre for Comparative and Evolutionary Psychology, Department of Psychology, University of Portsmouth, King Henry Building, Portsmouth PO1 2DY, UK
| |
Collapse
|
8
|
Wascher CAF, Allen K, Szipl G. Learning and motor inhibitory control in crows and domestic chickens. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2021; 8:210504. [PMID: 34703616 PMCID: PMC8527213 DOI: 10.1098/rsos.210504] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/24/2021] [Accepted: 09/30/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Cognitive abilities allow animals to navigate through complex, fluctuating environments. In the present study, we tested the performance of a captive group of eight crows, Corvus corone and 10 domestic chickens, Gallus gallus domesticus, in the cylinder task, as a test of motor inhibitory control and reversal learning as a measure of learning ability and behavioural flexibility. Four crows and nine chickens completed the cylinder task, eight crows and six chickens completed the reversal learning experiment. Crows performed better in the cylinder task compared with chickens. In the reversal learning experiment, species did not significantly differ in the number of trials until the learning criterion was reached. The performance in the reversal learning experiment did not correlate with performance in the cylinder task in chickens. Our results suggest crows to possess better motor inhibitory control compared with chickens. By contrast, learning performance in a reversal learning task did not differ between the species, indicating similar levels of behavioural flexibility. Interestingly, we describe notable individual differences in performance. We stress the importance not only to compare cognitive performance between species but also between individuals of the same species when investigating the evolution of cognitive skills.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Claudia A. F. Wascher
- Behavioural Ecology Research Group, School of Life Sciences, Anglia Ruskin University, Chelmsford, UK
| | - Katie Allen
- Behavioural Ecology Research Group, School of Life Sciences, Anglia Ruskin University, Chelmsford, UK
| | - Georgine Szipl
- Konrad Lorenz Forschungsstelle, Core facility, University of Vienna, Gruenau, Austria
| |
Collapse
|
9
|
Vila Pouca C, Mitchell DJ, Lefèvre J, Vega‐Trejo R, Kotrschal A. Early predation risk shapes adult learning and cognitive flexibility. OIKOS 2021. [DOI: 10.1111/oik.08481] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Catarina Vila Pouca
- Zoological Inst., Stockholm Univ. Stockholm Sweden
- Behavioural Ecology Group, Wageningen Univ. and Research Wageningen the Netherlands
| | | | | | | | - Alexander Kotrschal
- Zoological Inst., Stockholm Univ. Stockholm Sweden
- Behavioural Ecology Group, Wageningen Univ. and Research Wageningen the Netherlands
| |
Collapse
|
10
|
Be early or be tolerated: vervet monkey, Chlorocebus pygerythrus, foraging strategies in a dispersed resource. Anim Behav 2021. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2021.03.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
|