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Beauchamp G, Barve S. Gazing Strategies among Sentinels of a Cooperative Breeder Are Repeatable but Unrelated to Survival. BIOLOGY 2024; 13:458. [PMID: 38927338 PMCID: PMC11200772 DOI: 10.3390/biology13060458] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/03/2024] [Revised: 06/11/2024] [Accepted: 06/18/2024] [Indexed: 06/28/2024]
Abstract
Vigilance is a common behavioural adaptation to increase the chances of detecting predators before it is too late to escape. Behavioural traits are often repeatable among individuals over the long term, suggesting differences in personality. Earlier studies have documented individual consistency in the time allocated to vigilance. However, little is known about individual consistency in the ways vigilance is achieved from one moment to another and whether different patterns of vigilance among individuals are associated with survival. We aimed to determine whether sentinels of a cooperative breeder showed individual consistency in their vigilance and if individual variation was related to annual survival. During sentinel bouts from vantage points, Florida scrub-jays (Aphelocoma coerulescens) turn their heads from side to side to monitor their surroundings. Over three field seasons, we found that the head-turning frequency was repeatable in breeders but not in juveniles or non-breeding helpers. The moderate repeatability in breeders was not related to survival. Our results suggest that the head-turning frequency in sentinels of the Florida scrub-jay is repeatable in breeders but not in less experienced juveniles or helpers and, therefore, likely becomes more repeatable as individuals age. The assumption that individual variation in vigilance is related to survival was unsupported in our study and requires further study.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Sahas Barve
- Archbold Research Station, 123 Main Dr., Venus, FL 33960, USA;
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2
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Čapkun-Huot C, Blumstein DT, Garant D, Sol D, Réale D. Toward a unified framework for studying behavioural tolerance. Trends Ecol Evol 2024; 39:446-455. [PMID: 38177010 DOI: 10.1016/j.tree.2023.12.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/27/2023] [Revised: 12/04/2023] [Accepted: 12/12/2023] [Indexed: 01/06/2024]
Abstract
Behavioural responses are widely held to allow animals to cope with human-induced environmental changes. Less often appreciated is that the absence of behavioural response can also be advantageous. This is particularly true when animals become tolerant to situations that may be perceived as risky, although the actual risk is nonexistent. We provide a framework to understand the causes and consequences of behavioural tolerance. Tolerance can emerge from genetic, epigenetic, or learning mechanisms, each exerting different degrees of influence on its speed of acquisition, reversibility, specificity, and duration. The ultimate impact on fitness hinges on the interplay between these mechanisms and the nature of the stressor. Mechanistic clarity is therefore essential to better understand and manage human-wildlife interactions in the Anthropocene.
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Affiliation(s)
- Catherine Čapkun-Huot
- Département des Sciences Biologiques, Université du Québec à Montréal, Montréal H2X 1Y4, Canada.
| | - Daniel T Blumstein
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology and Institute of the Environment and Sustainability, University of California, Los Angeles, CA 90095-1606, USA
| | - Dany Garant
- Département de Biologie, Université de Sherbrooke, Sherbrooke J1K 2R1, Canada
| | - Daniel Sol
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology (CSIC-Universitat Pompeu Fabra), Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain; Centre for Ecological Research and Applied Forestries, 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Catalonia, Spain
| | - Denis Réale
- Département des Sciences Biologiques, Université du Québec à Montréal, Montréal H2X 1Y4, Canada
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Stein RM, Rachlow JL. Acoustic ecology of terrestrial mammals: a new Signaller–Receiver Conceptual Framework. Mamm Rev 2023. [DOI: 10.1111/mam.12314] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/16/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Rachel M. Stein
- Department of Fish and Wildlife Sciences University of Idaho 875 Perimeter Drive MS 1136 Moscow ID 83844‐1136 USA
| | - Janet L. Rachlow
- Department of Fish and Wildlife Sciences University of Idaho 875 Perimeter Drive MS 1136 Moscow ID 83844‐1136 USA
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4
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Consistent individual variation in plant communication: do plants have personalities? Oecologia 2022; 199:129-137. [DOI: 10.1007/s00442-022-05173-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/16/2021] [Accepted: 04/19/2022] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
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5
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Diggins CA. Behaviors associated with vocal communication of squirrels. Ecosphere 2021. [DOI: 10.1002/ecs2.3572] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Corinne A. Diggins
- Department of Fish and Wildlife Conservation Virginia Tech Blacksburg Virginia24061USA
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Couchoux C, Garant D, Aubert M, Clermont J, Réale D. Behavioral variation in natural contests: integrating plasticity and personality. Behav Ecol 2021. [DOI: 10.1093/beheco/araa127] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Abstract
Animals often interact aggressively when competing over limited resources. Aggressive decisions can be complex and may result from multiple sources of behavioral variation. The outcome of contests may be explained through contest theory and personality by considering conjointly plasticity and individual consistency. This integrative approach also allows investigating individual differences in responsiveness to environmental changes. Here, we observed multiple agonistic interactions occurring among eastern chipmunks (Tamias striatus) competing for food resources supplied at different distances from their burrows. Using an individual reaction norm approach, we found that the probability of winning a contest depended on an individual’s intrinsic characteristics (mass and age but not sex) but was also adjusted to characteristics of its opponents. Winning a contest also depended on extrinsic environmental characteristics, such as distance to the contestants’ burrows, but not the order of arrival at the feeding patch. We found consistent individual differences in the probability of winning, potentially related to differences in aggressiveness and territoriality. We also found that individuals differed in their plasticity level in response to changes in different characteristics of their social and physical environments. Plasticity, personality, and individual differences in responsiveness may thus all play a role in predicting contest outcome and in the evolution of animal contests.
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Affiliation(s)
- Charline Couchoux
- Département des Sciences Biologiques, Université du Québec à Montréal, CP 8888 Succursale Centre-ville, Montréal, Québec, Canada
- Département de Biologie, Chimie et Géographie, Université du Québec à Rimouski, Allée des Ursulines, Rimouski, Québec, Canada
| | - Dany Garant
- Département de Biologie, Université de Sherbrooke, Boulevard de l’Université, Sherbrooke, Québec, Canada
| | - Maxime Aubert
- Département des Sciences Biologiques, Université du Québec à Montréal, CP 8888 Succursale Centre-ville, Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - Jeanne Clermont
- Département des Sciences Biologiques, Université du Québec à Montréal, CP 8888 Succursale Centre-ville, Montréal, Québec, Canada
- Département de Biologie, Chimie et Géographie, Université du Québec à Rimouski, Allée des Ursulines, Rimouski, Québec, Canada
| | - Denis Réale
- Département des Sciences Biologiques, Université du Québec à Montréal, CP 8888 Succursale Centre-ville, Montréal, Québec, Canada
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LaBarge LR, Allan ATL, Berman CM, Hill RA, Margulis SW. Extent of threat detection depends on predator type and behavioral context in wild samango monkey groups. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2021. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-020-02959-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
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Nash AL, Jebb AHM, Blumstein DT. Is the propensity to emit alarm calls associated with health status? Curr Zool 2021; 66:607-614. [PMID: 33391359 PMCID: PMC7769573 DOI: 10.1093/cz/zoaa020] [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: 02/28/2020] [Accepted: 04/29/2020] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
The production and structure of animal signals may depend on an individual’s health status and may provide more than one type of information to receivers. While alarm calls are not typically viewed as health condition dependent, recent studies have suggested that their structure, and possibly their propensity to be emitted, depends on an individual’s health condition and state. We asked whether the propensity of yellow-bellied marmots (Marmota flaviventer) to emit calls is influenced by their immunological or parasite status, by quantifying both trap-elicited and natural calling rates as a function of their neutrophil-to-lymphocyte (NL) ratio, the presence of a blood borne trypanosome, and the presence of several intestinal parasites (Eimeria sp., Entamoeba sp., and Ascaris sp.). We fitted mixed effects models to determine if the health measures we collected were associated with the probability of calling in a trap and with annual rates of natural alarm calling. Marmots infected with a blood-borne trypanosome were marginally more likely to call naturally and when trapped, while those infected with the intestinal parasite Ascaris were less likely to call when trapped. NL ratio was not directly associated with in-trap calling probability, but males were more likely to call when they had higher NL ratios. Thus, health conditions, such as parasite infection and immune system activation, can modulate the production of alarm signals and potentially provide information to both predators and prey about the caller’s condition. Playback experiments are required to confirm if receivers use such information.
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Affiliation(s)
- Austin L Nash
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Colorado, 265 UCB, Boulder, CO 80309, USA
| | - Alexandra H M Jebb
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Aberdeen, Zoology Building, Tillydrone Avenue, Aberdeen, AB24 2TZ, UK
| | - Daniel T Blumstein
- The Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory, Box 519 Crested Butte, CO 81224, USA.,Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California, 621 Young Drive South, Los Angeles, CA 90095-1606, USA
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Carlson NV, Kelly EM, Couzin I. Individual vocal recognition across taxa: a review of the literature and a look into the future. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2020; 375:20190479. [PMID: 32420840 PMCID: PMC7331019 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2019.0479] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 02/12/2020] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Individual vocal recognition (IVR) has been well studied in mammals and birds. These studies have primarily delved into understanding IVR in specific limited contexts (e.g. parent-offspring and mate recognition) where individuals discriminate one individual from all others. However, little research has examined IVR in more socially demanding circumstances, such as when an individual discriminates all individuals in their social or familial group apart. In this review, we describe what IVR is and suggest splitting studies of IVR into two general types based on what questions they answer (IVR-singular, and IVR-multiple). We explain how we currently test for IVR, and many of the benefits and drawbacks of different methods. We address why IVR is so prevalent in the animal kingdom, and the circumstances in which it is often found. Finally, we explain current weaknesses in IVR research including temporality, specificity, and taxonomic bias, and testing paradigms, and provide some solutions to address these weaknesses. This article is part of the theme issue 'Signal detection theory in recognition systems: from evolving models to experimental tests'.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nora V. Carlson
- Department of Collective Behaviour, Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior, D-78457 Konstanz, Germany
- Centre for the Advanced Study of Collective Behaviour, University of Konstanz, Universitätsstraße 10, D-78457 Konstanz, Germany
- Department of Biology, University of Konstanz, Universitätsstraße 10, D-78457 Konstanz, Germany
| | - E. McKenna Kelly
- Department of Collective Behaviour, Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior, D-78457 Konstanz, Germany
- Centre for the Advanced Study of Collective Behaviour, University of Konstanz, Universitätsstraße 10, D-78457 Konstanz, Germany
- Department of Biology, University of Konstanz, Universitätsstraße 10, D-78457 Konstanz, Germany
| | - Iain Couzin
- Department of Collective Behaviour, Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior, D-78457 Konstanz, Germany
- Centre for the Advanced Study of Collective Behaviour, University of Konstanz, Universitätsstraße 10, D-78457 Konstanz, Germany
- Department of Biology, University of Konstanz, Universitätsstraße 10, D-78457 Konstanz, Germany
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10
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Ramos GDAP, Azevedo CSD, Jardim THA, Sant'Anna AC. Temperament in Captivity, Environmental Enrichment, Flight Ability, and Response to Humans in an Endangered Parrot Species. J APPL ANIM WELF SCI 2020; 24:379-391. [PMID: 32427519 DOI: 10.1080/10888705.2020.1765367] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/24/2022]
Abstract
Temperament assessment is useful in reintroduction programs. Reactivity to humans and flight ability are also important behavioral aspects for captive parrots candidates to reintroduction. The study aimed: a) to evaluate if behavioral responses to environmental enrichment differ as a function of temperament in captive Vinaceous-breasted Amazon parrots (Amazona vinacea) and b) to evaluate if the behavioral responses to environmental enrichment are related to flight ability and animal's reaction to human when offered food. A temperament assessment was performed and behavioral evaluations of parrots (n = 13) using an ethogram were carried out, in two phases: unenriched and enriched. Flight skill and food reward tests were also performed. Two temperament dimensions were described ("vigilance" and "risk-taking"). Parrots categorized as "vigilant" spent less time feeding on the feeder and interacting with environment. Animals with compromised flight ability spent more time preening, had lower frequency of vocalizations, tended to have fewer negative social interactions, and interacted less with the enrichment than individuals with better flight ability. Flight performance and temperament of captive parrots should be considered while planning and executing environmental enrichment techniques.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gabriela de A P Ramos
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Comportamento e Biologia Animal, Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal de Juiz de Fora, Juiz de Fora, MG, Brazil
| | - Cristiano S de Azevedo
- Departamento de Biodiversidade, Evolução e Meio Ambiente, Instituto de Ciências Exatas e Biológicas, Universidade Federal de Ouro Preto, Campus Morro do Cruzeiro, s/n Bauxita, Ouro Preto, MG, Brazil
| | - Talys H A Jardim
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Comportamento e Biologia Animal, Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal de Juiz de Fora, Juiz de Fora, MG, Brazil
| | - Aline C Sant'Anna
- Departamento de Zoologia, Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal de Juiz de Fora, Juiz de Fora, MG, Brazil
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11
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Carlson NV, Greene E, Templeton CN. Nuthatches vary their alarm calls based upon the source of the eavesdropped signals. Nat Commun 2020; 11:526. [PMID: 31988279 PMCID: PMC6985140 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-020-14414-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/15/2019] [Accepted: 01/03/2020] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Animal alarm calls can contain detailed information about a predator's threat, and heterospecific eavesdropping on these signals creates vast communication networks. While eavesdropping is common, this indirect public information is often less reliable than direct predator observations. Red-breasted nuthatches (Sitta canadensis) eavesdrop on chickadee mobbing calls and vary their behaviour depending on the threat encoded in those calls. Whether nuthatches propagate this indirect information in their own calls remains unknown. Here we test whether nuthatches propagate direct (high and low threat raptor vocalizations) or indirect (high and low threat chickadee mobbing calls) information about predators differently. When receiving direct information, nuthatches vary their mobbing calls to reflect the predator's threat. However, when nuthatches obtain indirect information, they produce calls with intermediate acoustic features, suggesting a more generic alarm signal. This suggests nuthatches are sensitive to the source and reliability of information and selectively propagate information in their own mobbing calls.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nora V Carlson
- Department of Collective Behaviour, University of Konstanz, Universitätsstraße 10, D-78457, Konstanz, Germany.
- Centre for the Advanced Study of Collective Behaviour, University of Konstanz, Universitätsstraße 10, D-78457, Konstanz, Germany.
- Department of Collective Behaviour, Max Plank Institute for Ornithology, Am Obstberg 1, 78315, Radolfzell am Bodensee, Germany.
| | - Erick Greene
- Division of Biological Sciences and The Wildlife Biology Program, The University of Montana, Health Sciences 205, 32 Campus Drive, Missoula, MT, 59812, USA
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Farrow LF, Barati A, McDonald PG. Cooperative bird discriminates between individuals based purely on their aerial alarm calls. Behav Ecol 2019. [DOI: 10.1093/beheco/arz182] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
AbstractFrom an evolutionary perspective, the ability to recognize individuals provides great selective advantages, such as avoiding inbreeding depression during breeding. Whilst the capacity to recognize individuals for these types of benefits is well established in social contexts, why this recognition might arise in a potentially deadly alarm-calling context following predator encounters is less obvious. For example, in most avian systems, alarm signals directed toward aerial predators represent higher predation risk and vulnerability than when individuals vocalize toward a terrestrial-based predator. Although selection should favor simple, more effective alarm calls to these dangerous aerial predators, the potential of these signals to nonetheless encode additional information such as caller identity has not received a great deal of attention. We tested for individual discrimination capacity in the aerial alarm vocalizations of the noisy miner (Manorina melanocephala), a highly social honeyeater that has been previously shown to be able to discriminate between the terrestrial alarm signals of individuals. Utilizing habituation–discrimination paradigm testing, we found conclusive evidence of individual discrimination in the aerial alarm calls of noisy miners, which was surprisingly of similar efficiency to their ability to discriminate between less urgent terrestrial alarm signals. Although the mechanism(s) driving this behavior is currently unclear, it most likely occurs as a result of selection favoring individualism among other social calls in the repertoire of this cooperative species. This raises the intriguing possibility that individualistic signatures in vocalizations of social animals might be more widespread than currently appreciated, opening new areas of bioacoustics research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lucy F Farrow
- Behavioural and Physiological Ecology Research Centre, Department of Zoology, School of Environmental and Rural Science, University of New England, Armidale, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Ahmad Barati
- Behavioural and Physiological Ecology Research Centre, Department of Zoology, School of Environmental and Rural Science, University of New England, Armidale, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Paul G McDonald
- Behavioural and Physiological Ecology Research Centre, Department of Zoology, School of Environmental and Rural Science, University of New England, Armidale, New South Wales, Australia
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Santostefano F, Garant D, Bergeron P, Montiglio P, Réale D. Social selection acts on behavior and body mass but does not contribute to the total selection differential in eastern chipmunks. Evolution 2019; 74:89-102. [DOI: 10.1111/evo.13875] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/01/2019] [Revised: 09/23/2019] [Accepted: 10/21/2019] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Francesca Santostefano
- Département des Sciences BiologiquesUniversité du Québec à Montréal Montréal Canada
- Département de Biologie, Faculté des SciencesUniversité de Sherbrooke Sherbrooke Québec Canada
| | - Dany Garant
- Département de Biologie, Faculté des SciencesUniversité de Sherbrooke Sherbrooke Québec Canada
| | - Patrick Bergeron
- Department of Biological SciencesBishop's University Sherbrooke Québec Canada
| | | | - Denis Réale
- Département des Sciences BiologiquesUniversité du Québec à Montréal Montréal Canada
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Loughry W, Oeser M, Anderson CD, Hoogland JL. The importance of individual variation in the alarm calls of Gunnison's prairie dogs. Anim Behav 2019. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2019.01.019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/05/2023]
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