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Arseneau-Robar TJM, Anderson KA, Sicotte P, Teichroeb JA. Monkeys who experience more feeding competition utilize social information to learn foraging skills faster. Sci Rep 2023; 13:11624. [PMID: 37468534 PMCID: PMC10356951 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-37536-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/03/2023] [Accepted: 06/23/2023] [Indexed: 07/21/2023] Open
Abstract
Animals must learn foraging skills to successfully survive and reproduce but the sources of interindividual variation in learning are poorly understood. For example, there is little consensus on the role motivation plays, even though it is a key factor impacting learning outcomes in humans. Here, we conduct a field experiment on a wild primate to investigate whether an individual's vulnerability to feeding competition impacts their motivation to learn a beneficial foraging technique. We provided a group of monkeys with a food reward (i.e., a half banana) that needed to be retrieved from a box. The monkeys discovered an efficient technique that consistently allowed them to retrieve the banana quickly, decreasing the risk of food loss to competitors. We found that individuals who frequently experienced feeding competition learned this efficient technique significantly faster than individuals who rarely foraged in the presence of a dominant competitor. They appeared to use social learning to learn faster as they were more attentive to the handling techniques others used and improved their foraging skills after opportunities to observe a skilled demonstrator. These findings support that an individual's vulnerability to feeding competition impacts their motivation to learn foraging skills that reduce food loss to competitors.
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Affiliation(s)
- T Jean M Arseneau-Robar
- Department of Anthropology, University of Toronto Scarborough, Toronto, ON, Canada.
- Department of Anthropology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.
- Department of Biology, Concordia University, Montreal, QC, Canada.
| | - Karyn A Anderson
- Department of Anthropology, University of Toronto Scarborough, Toronto, ON, Canada
- Department of Anthropology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Pascale Sicotte
- Department of Biology, Concordia University, Montreal, QC, Canada
| | - Julie A Teichroeb
- Department of Anthropology, University of Toronto Scarborough, Toronto, ON, Canada
- Department of Anthropology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
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2
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The evolution of prestige: Perspectives and hypotheses from comparative studies. NEW IDEAS IN PSYCHOLOGY 2023. [DOI: 10.1016/j.newideapsych.2022.100987] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/07/2022]
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3
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Sciaky L, Gunst N, Wandia IN, Leca JB. Dyadic response facilitation of object play in Balinese long-tailed macaques. Behav Processes 2022; 203:104765. [DOI: 10.1016/j.beproc.2022.104765] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/24/2022] [Revised: 10/04/2022] [Accepted: 10/11/2022] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
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Deshpande A, Van Boekholt B, Zuberbuhler K. Preliminary evidence for one-trial social learning of vervet monkey alarm calling. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2022; 9:210560. [PMID: 36016915 DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.c.6133928] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/17/2022] [Accepted: 07/19/2022] [Indexed: 05/25/2023]
Abstract
How do non-human primates learn to use their alarm calls? Social learning is a promising candidate, but its role in the acquisition of meaning and call usage has not been studied systematically, neither during ontogeny nor in adulthood. To investigate the role of social learning in alarm call comprehension and use, we exposed groups of wild vervet monkeys to two unfamiliar animal models in the presence or absence of conspecific alarm calls. To assess the learning outcome of these experiences, we then presented the models for a second time to the same monkeys, but now without additional alarm call information. In subjects previously exposed in conjunction with alarm calls, we found heightened predator inspection compared to control subjects exposed without alarm calls, indicating one-trial social learning of 'meaning'. Moreover, some juveniles (but not adults) produced the same alarm calls they heard during the initial exposure whereas the authenticity of the models had an additional effect. Our experiment provides preliminary evidence that, in non-human primates, call meaning can be acquired by one-trail social learning but that subject age and core knowledge about predators additionally moderate the acquisition of novel call-referent associations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adwait Deshpande
- Department of Comparative Cognition, Institute of Biology, University of Neuchatel, Neuchatel, Switzerland
- Inkawu Vervet Project, Mawana Game Reserve, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa
| | - Bas Van Boekholt
- Inkawu Vervet Project, Mawana Game Reserve, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa
- Animal Ecology, Department of Biology, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands
- Comparative BioCognition, Department of Cognitive Science, University of Osnabrück, Germany
| | - Klaus Zuberbuhler
- Department of Comparative Cognition, Institute of Biology, University of Neuchatel, Neuchatel, Switzerland
- Inkawu Vervet Project, Mawana Game Reserve, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa
- School of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of St Andrews, St Andrews, UK
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5
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Deshpande A, Van Boekholt B, Zuberbuhler K. Preliminary evidence for one-trial social learning of vervet monkey alarm calling. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2022; 9:210560. [PMID: 36016915 PMCID: PMC9399712 DOI: 10.1098/rsos.210560] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/17/2022] [Accepted: 07/19/2022] [Indexed: 05/10/2023]
Abstract
How do non-human primates learn to use their alarm calls? Social learning is a promising candidate, but its role in the acquisition of meaning and call usage has not been studied systematically, neither during ontogeny nor in adulthood. To investigate the role of social learning in alarm call comprehension and use, we exposed groups of wild vervet monkeys to two unfamiliar animal models in the presence or absence of conspecific alarm calls. To assess the learning outcome of these experiences, we then presented the models for a second time to the same monkeys, but now without additional alarm call information. In subjects previously exposed in conjunction with alarm calls, we found heightened predator inspection compared to control subjects exposed without alarm calls, indicating one-trial social learning of 'meaning'. Moreover, some juveniles (but not adults) produced the same alarm calls they heard during the initial exposure whereas the authenticity of the models had an additional effect. Our experiment provides preliminary evidence that, in non-human primates, call meaning can be acquired by one-trail social learning but that subject age and core knowledge about predators additionally moderate the acquisition of novel call-referent associations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adwait Deshpande
- Department of Comparative Cognition, Institute of Biology, University of Neuchatel, Neuchatel, Switzerland
- Inkawu Vervet Project, Mawana Game Reserve, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa
| | - Bas Van Boekholt
- Inkawu Vervet Project, Mawana Game Reserve, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa
- Animal Ecology, Department of Biology, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands
- Comparative BioCognition, Department of Cognitive Science, University of Osnabrück, Germany
| | - Klaus Zuberbuhler
- Department of Comparative Cognition, Institute of Biology, University of Neuchatel, Neuchatel, Switzerland
- Inkawu Vervet Project, Mawana Game Reserve, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa
- School of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of St Andrews, St Andrews, UK
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Benítez ME, Painter MC, Guisneuf N, Bergman TJ. Answering big questions with small data: the use of field experiments in primate cognition. Curr Opin Behav Sci 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.cobeha.2022.101141] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
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7
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Harrison RA, van de Waal E. The unique potential of field research to understand primate social learning and cognition. Curr Opin Behav Sci 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.cobeha.2022.101132] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
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8
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Luna D, González C, Byrd CJ, Palomo R, Huenul E, Figueroa J. The Effect of Demonstrator Social Rank on the Attentiveness and Motivation of Pigs to Positively Interact with Their Human Caretakers. Animals (Basel) 2021; 11:ani11072140. [PMID: 34359267 PMCID: PMC8300723 DOI: 10.3390/ani11072140] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/10/2021] [Revised: 07/09/2021] [Accepted: 07/12/2021] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Simple Summary Motivation to express a socially learned behavior can be inhibited or facilitated by the presence of socially dominant individuals, who often attract greater attention from their conspecifics. This study investigated whether experienced pigs (termed “demonstrators”) of higher rank attract greater attention from their pen mates when they are observed from behind an acrylic panel while being gently handled by the stockperson. We also investigated whether the presence of a demonstrator pig of different social rank, who previously established a positive relationship with the stockperson in presence of conspecifics, affects the motivation and behaviors of their pen mates to positively interact with humans. Our results show that during the gentle handling of the demonstrator, there was an overall preference for observer pigs to visually attend to the dominant demonstrators more than the low-ranking demonstrators. Furthermore, our study shows that the proximity of a dominant demonstrator pig interfered with the motivation of their pen mates to positively interact with the stockperson, whereas the presence of a subordinate demonstrator facilitated the expression of a greater affinity toward the human, resulting in longer physical contact, and a higher percentage of accepted strokes. These findings reveal that social dynamics and dominance rank have a strong effect on the attentional state and the facilitation and inhibition of social behaviors in domestic pigs. Abstract In this study, we addressed the social attentiveness, as well as the phenomenon of social facilitation and inhibition in the context of a positive human–pig relationship. Specifically, we investigated whether the social rank of an experienced pig (termed “demonstrator”) has an effect on the attentiveness of the remaining pen mates (N = 40) when they observe the demonstrator being gently handled by a stockperson from behind an acrylic panel. We found that pigs preferentially attended to dominant demonstrators rather than subordinate demonstrators during their gentle handling sessions with the stockperson. Additionally, we also examined whether the presence of a demonstrator pig of different social rank, who previously established a positive relationship with the stockperson in presence of conspecifics, affects the behavior and motivation of their pen mates to positively interact with the stockperson. To test for the effect of the presence and demonstrator’s social rank on pen mate interactions with the stockperson, we evaluated the behavior of domestic pigs (N = 65) toward the stockperson using a human-approach test in their home-pen. Pigs showed a decrease in their motivation to positively interact with the stockperson when a socially dominant demonstrator was present, behaving similarly to animals receiving minimal human contact (control group). Overall, they exhibited a greater latency to physical contact, a lower acceptance of stroking, and spent more time looking at the stockperson compared to pigs exposed to subordinate demonstrators. Taken together, these findings expand our current understanding of pigs’ cognition and social behavior, and the nature of social attention bias in farm animals. Our findings indicate that positive handling of previously selected subordinate demonstrators seems to be the best strategy to reduce the level of fear in large groups of pigs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniela Luna
- Departamento de Ciencias Animales, Facultad de Agronomía e Ingeniería Forestal, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Santiago 7820436, Chile; (D.L.); (C.G.); (E.H.)
| | - Catalina González
- Departamento de Ciencias Animales, Facultad de Agronomía e Ingeniería Forestal, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Santiago 7820436, Chile; (D.L.); (C.G.); (E.H.)
| | - Christopher J. Byrd
- Deparment of Animal Sciences, North Dakota State University, NDSU Dept. 7630, P.O. Box 6050, Fargo, ND 58108-6050, USA;
| | - Rocío Palomo
- Departamento de Fomento de la Producción Animal, Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias y Pecuarias, Universidad de Chile, Santa Rosa 11735, La Pintana, Santiago 8820000, Chile;
| | - Elizabeth Huenul
- Departamento de Ciencias Animales, Facultad de Agronomía e Ingeniería Forestal, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Santiago 7820436, Chile; (D.L.); (C.G.); (E.H.)
| | - Jaime Figueroa
- Instituto de Ciencias Agroalimentarias, Animales y Ambientales—ICA3, Universidad de O’Higgins, San Fernando 3070000, Chile
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +56-22-3544092
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van Boekholt B, van de Waal E, Sterck EH. Organized to learn: the influence of social structure on social learning opportunities in a group. iScience 2021; 24:102117. [PMID: 33659880 PMCID: PMC7890404 DOI: 10.1016/j.isci.2021.102117] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Social learning, which is a mechanism that allows an individual to acquire skills from other individuals, occurs in a social context. Therefore, factors that influence social context, like social structure, will impact social learning opportunities. This review explores how features of social structure affect social learning opportunities in primates, either through their relationship with social tolerance or through the number of social learning models. Features that are investigated in this review and that we hypothesize affect social learning opportunities are parental investment, dominance hierarchy, nepotism, social bonds, dispersal, group size, fission-fusion dynamics, and sex ratio. For most of these features we find evidence, but support varies. Of all primate species, only humans show all the requirements of an optimal social structure to promote social learning. Future research into social learning and culture should not overlook the social context in which it takes place.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bas van Boekholt
- Animal Ecology, Department of Biology, Utrecht University, Utrecht, 3584CH The Netherlands
- Department of Comparative Biocognition, Institute of Cognitive Science, University of Osnabrück, Osnabrück, 49074, Germany
| | - Erica van de Waal
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, University of Lausanne, Lausanne, 1015, Switzerland
| | - Elisabeth H.M. Sterck
- Animal Ecology, Department of Biology, Utrecht University, Utrecht, 3584CH The Netherlands
- Animal Science Department, Biomedical Primate Research Centre, Rijswijk, 2288GJ, the Netherlands
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10
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Vermande MM, Sterck EHM. How to Get the Biggest Slice of the Cake. A Comparative View of Social Behaviour and Resource Access in Human Children and Nonhuman Primates. Front Psychol 2020; 11:584815. [PMID: 33250823 PMCID: PMC7673353 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2020.584815] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/18/2020] [Accepted: 09/22/2020] [Indexed: 01/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Social complexity results from engaging in different classes of social behaviour. The presence of different classes of social behaviour is reflected in multidimensional concepts of social asymmetry, found in both human and nonhuman primates. Based on an overview of such concepts, we propose that three classes of social behaviour are involved in having access to scarce and desired resources: next to aggressive and affiliative behaviour, also action indicating behaviour (i.e., inspire another individual to follow one's example or intentions) may lead to resource access. Studies with nonhuman primate and human children show that the contribution of aggression and affiliation to resource access has been widely documented and that there is initial support for action indicating behaviour. In addition, the studies show similarities and differences in conceptualization and approach that may inspire future research. Future research should address the (in)dependency of the behavioural dimensions, their relative importance, individual differences in combined expression and the type of resources accessed. Only a multi-dimensional view on behaviour leading to resource access will highlight the benefits of social complexity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marjolijn M. Vermande
- Department of Child and Adolescent Studies, Utrecht University, Utrecht, Netherlands
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11
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Selecting between iron-rich and clay-rich soils: a geophagy field experiment with black-and-white colobus monkeys in the Budongo Forest Reserve, Uganda. Primates 2020; 62:133-142. [PMID: 32676864 DOI: 10.1007/s10329-020-00845-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/27/2019] [Accepted: 07/04/2020] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
Geophagy, the intentional consumption of soil, has been observed in humans and numerous other animal species. Geophagy has been posited to be adaptive, i.e., consumed soil protects against gastrointestinal distress and/or supplements micronutrients. We conducted a field experiment in the Budongo Forest, Uganda, to investigate geophagic behaviors, including soil preference, the quantity of soil eaten, and competition for access to preferred soils. We placed pairs of artificial tree stumps at two existing geophagy sites. One stump contained soil from the surrounding area, Sonso, that could supplement bioavailable iron. The other stump contained soil from a neighboring community, Waibira, that was richer in clay minerals, which could provide protection from plant secondary compounds. We monitored activity and engagement with the stumps for 10 days using camera traps. After 5 days, we reversed the type of soil that was in the stumps at both sites (i.e., a crossover design). Only Colobus guereza (black-and-white colobus monkeys) interacted with the stumps. These monkeys used visual and olfactory cues to select between the two soils and exclusively ate the clay-rich soil, consuming 9.67 kg of soil over 4.33 h. Our findings lend the greatest plausibility to the protection hypothesis. Additionally, monkeys competed for access to the stumps, and 13% of the videos captured aggression, including pushing, excluding, and chasing other individuals from the experimental stumps. Nine episodes of vigilance and flight behavior were also observed. Given that intentionally ingested soil is a valuable resource that may confer health benefits, geophagy sites should be conserved and protected.
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12
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Canteloup C, Hoppitt W, van de Waal E. Wild primates copy higher-ranked individuals in a social transmission experiment. Nat Commun 2020; 11:459. [PMID: 31974385 PMCID: PMC6978360 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-019-14209-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/23/2019] [Accepted: 12/16/2019] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Little is known about how multiple social learning strategies interact and how organisms integrate both individual and social information. Here we combine, in a wild primate, an open diffusion experiment with a modeling approach: Network-Based Diffusion Analysis using a dynamic observation network. The vervet monkeys we study were not provided with a trained model; instead they had access to eight foraging boxes that could be opened in either of two ways. We report that individuals socially learn the techniques they observe in others. After having learnt one option, individuals are 31x more likely to subsequently asocially learn the other option than individuals naïve to both options. We discover evidence of a rank transmission bias favoring learning from higher-ranked individuals, with no evidence for age, sex or kin bias. This fine-grained analysis highlights a rank transmission bias in a field experiment mimicking the diffusion of a behavioral innovation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Charlotte Canteloup
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, University of Lausanne, 1015, Lausanne, Switzerland. .,Inkawu Vervet Project, Mawana Game Reserve, KwaZulu Natal, 3115, South Africa. .,Anthropological Institute and Museum, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057, Zurich, Switzerland.
| | - William Hoppitt
- Faculty of Biological Sciences, University of Leeds, Leeds, UK.,School of Biological Sciences, Royal Holloway, University of London, London, UK
| | - Erica van de Waal
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, University of Lausanne, 1015, Lausanne, Switzerland.,Inkawu Vervet Project, Mawana Game Reserve, KwaZulu Natal, 3115, South Africa.,Anthropological Institute and Museum, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057, Zurich, Switzerland
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Tennie C, Bandini E, van Schaik CP, Hopper LM. The zone of latent solutions and its relevance to understanding ape cultures. BIOLOGY & PHILOSOPHY 2020; 35:55. [PMID: 33093737 PMCID: PMC7548278 DOI: 10.1007/s10539-020-09769-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/18/2019] [Accepted: 09/18/2020] [Indexed: 05/16/2023]
Abstract
The zone of latent solutions (ZLS) hypothesis provides an alternative approach to explaining cultural patterns in primates and many other animals. According to the ZLS hypothesis, non-human great ape (henceforth: ape) cultures consist largely or solely of latent solutions. The current competing (and predominant) hypothesis for ape culture argues instead that at least some of their behavioural or artefact forms are copied through specific social learning mechanisms ("copying social learning hypothesis") and that their forms may depend on copying (copying-dependent forms). In contrast, the ape ZLS hypothesis does not require these forms to be copied. Instead, it suggests that several (non-form-copying) social learning mechanisms help determine the frequency (but typically not the form) of these behaviours and artefacts within connected individuals. The ZLS hypothesis thus suggests that increases and stabilisations of a particular behaviour's or artefact's frequency can derive from socially-mediated (cued) form reinnovations. Therefore, and while genes and ecology play important roles as well, according to the ape ZLS hypothesis, apes typically acquire the forms of their behaviours and artefacts individually, but are usually socially induced to do so (provided sufficient opportunity, necessity, motivation and timing). The ZLS approach is often criticized-perhaps also because it challenges the current null hypothesis, which instead assumes a requirement of form-copying social learning mechanisms to explain many ape behavioural (and/or artefact) forms. However, as the ZLS hypothesis is a new approach, with less accumulated literature compared to the current null hypothesis, some confusion is to be expected. Here, we clarify the ZLS approach-also in relation to other competing hypotheses-and address misconceptions and objections. We believe that these clarifications will provide researchers with a coherent theoretical approach and an experimental methodology to examine the necessity of form-copying variants of social learning in apes, humans and other species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Claudio Tennie
- Department for Early Prehistory and Quaternary Ecology, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Elisa Bandini
- Department for Early Prehistory and Quaternary Ecology, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Carel P. van Schaik
- Department of Anthropology and Anthropological Museum, University of Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland
| | - Lydia M. Hopper
- Lester E. Fisher Center for the Study and Conservation of Apes, Lincoln Park Zoo, Chicago, IL USA
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Brotcorne F, Holzner A, Jorge-Sales L, Gunst N, Hambuckers A, Wandia IN, Leca JB. Social influence on the expression of robbing and bartering behaviours in Balinese long-tailed macaques. Anim Cogn 2019; 23:311-326. [PMID: 31820148 DOI: 10.1007/s10071-019-01335-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/17/2019] [Revised: 11/20/2019] [Accepted: 12/02/2019] [Indexed: 01/01/2023]
Abstract
Animals use social information, available from conspecifics, to learn and express novel and adaptive behaviours. Amongst social learning mechanisms, response facilitation occurs when observing a demonstrator performing a behaviour temporarily increases the probability that the observer will perform the same behaviour shortly after. We studied "robbing and bartering" (RB), two behaviours routinely displayed by free-ranging long-tailed macaques (Macaca fascicularis) at Uluwatu Temple, Bali, Indonesia. When robbing, a monkey steals an inedible object from a visitor and may use this object as a token by exchanging it for food with the temple staff (bartering). We tested whether the expression of RB-related behaviours could be explained by response facilitation and was influenced by model-based biases (i.e. dominance rank, age, experience and success of the demonstrator). We compared video-recorded focal samples of 44 witness individuals (WF) immediately after they observed an RB-related event performed by group members, and matched-control focal samples (MCF) of the same focal subjects, located at similar distance from former demonstrators (N = 43 subjects), but in the absence of any RB-related demonstrations. We found that the synchronized expression of robbing and bartering could be explained by response facilitation. Both behaviours occurred significantly more often during WF than during MCF. Following a contagion-like effect, the rate of robbing behaviour displayed by the witness increased with the cumulative rate of robbing behaviour performed by demonstrators, but this effect was not found for the bartering behaviour. The expression of RB was not influenced by model-based biases. Our results support the cultural nature of the RB practice in the Uluwatu macaques.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fany Brotcorne
- Research Unit SPHERES, University of Liège, Liège, Belgium.
| | - Anna Holzner
- School of Biological Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Penang, Malaysia
| | - Lucía Jorge-Sales
- Primate Conservation and Sustainable Development, Miku Conservación AC, Mérida, México
| | - Noëlle Gunst
- Department of Psychology, University of Lethbridge, Lethbridge, Canada
| | | | - I Nengah Wandia
- Primate Research Center, Universitas Udayana, Bali, Indonesia
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Canteloup C. Qui copier ? Les stratégies d’apprentissage social chez les animaux. REVUE DE PRIMATOLOGIE 2019. [DOI: 10.4000/primatologie.4326] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
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Primates are living links to our past: The contribution of comparative studies with wild vervet monkeys to the field of social cognition. Cortex 2019; 118:65-81. [DOI: 10.1016/j.cortex.2019.03.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/30/2018] [Revised: 10/29/2018] [Accepted: 03/13/2019] [Indexed: 01/14/2023]
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Social attention biases in juvenile wild vervet monkeys: implications for socialisation and social learning processes. Primates 2019; 60:261-275. [PMID: 30941537 DOI: 10.1007/s10329-019-00721-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/31/2018] [Accepted: 02/25/2019] [Indexed: 10/27/2022]
Abstract
The concept of directed social learning predicts that social learning opportunities for an individual will depend on social dynamics, context and demonstrator identity. However, few empirical studies have examined social attention biases in animal groups. Sex-based and kinship-based biases in social learning and social attention towards females have been shown in a despotic and female philopatric primate: the vervet monkey (Chlorocebus pygerythrus). The present study examined social attention during the juvenile period. Social attention was recorded through 5-min focal observations during periods of natural foraging. Kin emerged as the most important focus of social attention in juveniles, intensified by biased spatial proximity towards matrilineal related members. The highest-ranking conspecifics were more frequently observed by juveniles than low-ranking ones. Additionally, younger and orphaned juveniles showed higher levels of social attention overall, compared to other age categories. No effect of the juvenile's hierarchical rank was detected, suggesting that the variation in social attention recorded reflects different biases and stages of social learning and socialisation, rather than social anxiety. Juvenile females tended to exhibit a dominance-based bias more strongly than did males. This might be explained by a greater emphasis on attaining social knowledge during juvenile socialisation in the philopatric sex. Moreover, despite a preferred association between juveniles, social attention was more often directed to adults, suggesting that adults may still be more often chosen as a target of attention independent of their dominance rank.
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Bono AE, Whiten A, van Schaik C, Krützen M, Eichenberger F, Schnider A, van de Waal E. Payoff- and Sex-Biased Social Learning Interact in a Wild Primate Population. Curr Biol 2018; 28:2800-2805.e4. [DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2018.06.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/11/2018] [Revised: 03/23/2018] [Accepted: 06/11/2018] [Indexed: 10/28/2022]
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Coetzer WG, Turner TR, Schmitt CA, Grobler JP. Adaptive genetic variation at three loci in South African vervet monkeys ( Chlorocebus pygerythrus) and the role of selection within primates. PeerJ 2018; 6:e4953. [PMID: 29888138 PMCID: PMC5991302 DOI: 10.7717/peerj.4953] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/23/2018] [Accepted: 05/22/2018] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Vervet monkeys (Chlorocebus pygerythrus) are one of the most widely distributed non-human primate species found in South Africa. They occur across all the South African provinces, inhabiting a large variety of habitats. These habitats vary sufficiently that it can be assumed that various factors such as pathogen diversity could influence populations in different ways. In turn, these factors could lead to varied levels of selection at specific fitness linked loci. The Toll-like receptor (TLR) gene family, which play an integral role in vertebrate innate immunity, is a group of fitness linked loci which has been the focus of much research. In this study, we assessed the level of genetic variation at partial sequences of two TLR loci (TLR4 and 7) and a reproductively linked gene, acrosin (ACR), across the different habitat types within the vervet monkey distribution range. Gene variation and selection estimates were also made among 11-21 primate species. Low levels of genetic variation for all three gene regions were observed within vervet monkeys, with only two polymorphic sites identified for TLR4, three sites for TLR7 and one site for ACR. TLR7 variation was positively correlated with high mean annual rainfall, which was linked to increased pathogen abundance. The observed genetic variation at TLR4 might have been influenced by numerous factors including pathogens and climatic conditions. The ACR exonic regions showed no variation in vervet monkeys, which could point to the occurrence of a selective sweep. The TLR4 and TLR7 results for the among primate analyses was mostly in line with previous studies, indicating a higher rate of evolution for TLR4. Within primates, ACR coding regions also showed signs of positive selection, which was congruent with previous reports on mammals. Important additional information to the already existing vervet monkey knowledge base was gained from this study, which can guide future research projects on this highly researched taxon as well as help conservation agencies with future management planning involving possible translocations of this species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Willem G Coetzer
- Department of Genetics, University of the Free State, Bloemfontein, South Africa
| | - Trudy R Turner
- Department of Anthropology, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Milwaukee, WI, USA
| | | | - J Paul Grobler
- Department of Genetics, University of the Free State, Bloemfontein, South Africa
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