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Pahl A, König von Borstel U, Brucks D. Llamas use social information from conspecifics and humans to solve a spatial detour task. Anim Cogn 2023; 26:1623-1633. [PMID: 37410341 PMCID: PMC10442258 DOI: 10.1007/s10071-023-01808-8] [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: 02/15/2023] [Revised: 06/27/2023] [Accepted: 06/30/2023] [Indexed: 07/07/2023]
Abstract
Learning by observing others (i.e. social learning) is an important mechanism to reduce the costs of individual learning. Social learning can occur between conspecifics but also heterospecifics. Domestication processes might have changed the animals' sensitivity to human social cues and recent research indicates that domesticated species are particularly good in learning socially from humans. Llamas (Lama glama) are an interesting model species for that purpose. Llamas were bred as pack animals, which requires close contact and cooperative behaviour towards humans. We investigated whether llamas learn socially from trained conspecifics and humans in a spatial detour task. Subjects were required to detour metal hurdles arranged in a V-shape to reach a food reward. Llamas were more successful in solving the task after both a human and a conspecific demonstrated the task compared to a control condition with no demonstrator. Individual differences in behaviour (i.e. food motivation and distraction) further affected the success rate. Animals did not necessarily use the same route as the demonstrators, thus, indicating that they adopted a more general detour behaviour. These results suggest that llamas can extract information from conspecific and heterospecific demonstrations; hence, broadening our knowledge of domesticated species that are sensitive to human social behaviour.
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Affiliation(s)
- Annkatrin Pahl
- Department of Anthropology/Sociobiology, University of Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany.
- Institute of Behavioural Physiology, Research Institute for Farm Animal Biology (FBN), Dummerstorf, Germany.
| | - Uta König von Borstel
- Animal Husbandry, Behaviour and Welfare Unit, Department of Animal Breeding and Genetics, University of Giessen, Giessen, Germany
| | - Désirée Brucks
- Animal Husbandry, Behaviour and Welfare Unit, Department of Animal Breeding and Genetics, University of Giessen, Giessen, Germany.
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Veit A, Weißhaupt S, Bruat A, Wondrak M, Huber L. Emulative learning of a two-step task in free-ranging domestic pigs. Anim Cogn 2023; 26:929-942. [PMID: 36652043 PMCID: PMC10066142 DOI: 10.1007/s10071-022-01740-3] [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: 07/19/2022] [Revised: 12/03/2022] [Accepted: 12/26/2022] [Indexed: 01/19/2023]
Abstract
Previous research showed that young domestic pigs learn through observation of conspecifics by using social learning mechanisms like social facilitation, enhancement effects, and even object movement re-enactment. The latter suggests some form of emulative learning in which the observer learns about the object's movements and affordances. As it remains unclear whether pigs need a social agent to learn about objects, we provided 36 free-ranging domestic pigs with varying degrees of social to non-social demonstrations on how to solve a two-step manipulative foraging task: observers watched either a conspecific or a human demonstrator, or self-moving objects ("ghost control"), or a ghost control accompanied by an inactive conspecific bystander. In addition, 22 subjects that were previously tested without any demonstrator were used as a non-observer control. To solve the task, the subjects had to first remove a plug from its recess to then be able to slide a cover to the side, which would lay open a food compartment. Observers interacted longer with the relevant objects (plugs) and were more successful in solving the task compared to non-observers. We found no differences with regard to success between the four observer groups, indicating that the pigs mainly learned about the apparatus rather than about the actions. As the only common feature of the different demonstrations was the movement of the plug and the cover, we conclude the observer pigs learned primarily by emulation, suggesting that social agents are not necessary for pigs when learning through observation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ariane Veit
- Messerli Research Institute, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, University of Vienna, Medical University of Vienna, Veterinaerplatz 1, 1210, Vienna, Austria.
| | - Stefanie Weißhaupt
- Messerli Research Institute, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, University of Vienna, Medical University of Vienna, Veterinaerplatz 1, 1210, Vienna, Austria
| | - Arnaud Bruat
- Messerli Research Institute, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, University of Vienna, Medical University of Vienna, Veterinaerplatz 1, 1210, Vienna, Austria
| | - Marianne Wondrak
- Messerli Research Institute, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, University of Vienna, Medical University of Vienna, Veterinaerplatz 1, 1210, Vienna, Austria
| | - Ludwig Huber
- Messerli Research Institute, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, University of Vienna, Medical University of Vienna, Veterinaerplatz 1, 1210, Vienna, Austria
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Janczarek I, Stachurska A, Pieszka M, Dracz K, Tkaczyk E, Kędzierski W, Łuszczyński J. Effect of fearfulness and cortisol reactivity to stress on the spatial learning performance in mountain primitive horses. J Vet Behav 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jveb.2022.10.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/05/2022]
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Stenfelt J, Yngvesson J, Blokhuis HJ, Rørvang MV. Dairy cows did not rely on social learning mechanisms when solving a spatial detour task. Front Vet Sci 2022; 9:956559. [PMID: 36157180 PMCID: PMC9490023 DOI: 10.3389/fvets.2022.956559] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/30/2022] [Accepted: 08/10/2022] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
As herd-living animals, cattle have opportunities to observe and learn from others. While there is evidence of simpler processes of information transfer in cattle (social facilitation and stimulus enhancement), true social learning mechanisms in cattle remain largely unexplored. This study aimed to investigate if dairy cows possess cognitive abilities to acquire new behavior through social learning in a spatial detour task. Thirty-two dairy cows (ages 2–9 years) participated in the study. A food reward was placed behind a U-shaped formation (4 x 2 m), allowing the cows to see but not reach the reward without first detouring around the obstacle. The U-shape provided two routes (~18 m walking distance) to the reward, of which one was used for demonstration. Two cows were demonstrators and 30 cows were divided into two groups, assigned as either observers of demonstration (n = 15) or controls not observing demonstration (n = 15). Cows had three attempts (trials) to solve the task. Response variables were: success, latency to reach the reward, concordance in choice of route to detour, and time spent facing the test arena before each trial started. The study found no significant differences in success or latency between observers and controls, although observers spent a greater proportion of the time before trials facing the test arena. However, successful observers tended to be faster than successful controls. Individual cows were generally consistent in their choice of route, and cows choosing the demonstrated route were significantly faster than cows that did not. Success in solving the task decreased over trials, likely due to decreasing food motivation. Age had a significant effect on success in 2nd and 3rd trial, with younger cows being more successful. The lacking effect of treatment on success suggests that the age effect may be explained by a higher motivation, rather than social learning. Adding to the sparse knowledge of social learning in farm animals, these results indicate that cows did not utilize social learning mechanisms when solving the detour task. Future research should focus on clarifying whether cattle possess cognitive abilities necessary for social learning, as well as if /when social learning is a primary strategy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Johanna Stenfelt
- Department of Biosystems and Technology, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Lomma, Sweden
| | - Jenny Yngvesson
- Department of Animal Environment and Health, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Skara, Sweden
| | - Harry J. Blokhuis
- Department of Animal Environment and Health, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Skara, Sweden
| | - Maria Vilain Rørvang
- Department of Biosystems and Technology, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Lomma, Sweden
- *Correspondence: Maria Vilain Rørvang
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Does a high social status confer greater levels of trust from groupmates? An experimental study of leadership in domestic horses. Behav Processes 2022; 201:104708. [PMID: 35872161 DOI: 10.1016/j.beproc.2022.104708] [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: 03/25/2022] [Revised: 06/16/2022] [Accepted: 07/11/2022] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
In collective movements, specific individuals may emerge as leaders. In this study on the domestic horse (Equus ferus caballus), we conducted experiments to establish if an individual is successfully followed due to its social status (including hierarchical rank and centrality). We first informed one horse about a hidden food location and recorded by how many it was followed when going back to this location. In this context, all horses lead their groupmates successfully. In a second step, we tested whether group members would trust some leaders more than others by removing the food before the informed individual led the group back to the food location. In addition, two control initiators with intermediate social status for which the food was not removed were tested. The results, confirmed by simulations, demonstrated that the proportions of followers for the unreliable initiator with highest social status are greater than the ones of the unreliable initiator with lowest social status. Our results suggest an existing relationship between having a high social status and a leadership role. Indeed, the status of a leader sometimes prevail at the detriment of the accuracy of the information, because an elevated social status apparently confers a high level of trust.
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Jardat P, Lansade L. Cognition and the human-animal relationship: a review of the sociocognitive skills of domestic mammals toward humans. Anim Cogn 2021; 25:369-384. [PMID: 34476652 DOI: 10.1007/s10071-021-01557-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/28/2021] [Revised: 08/20/2021] [Accepted: 08/25/2021] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
In the past 20 years, research focusing on interspecific sociocognitive abilities of animals toward humans has been growing, allowing a better understanding of the interactions between humans and animals. This review focuses on five sociocognitive abilities of domestic mammals in relation to humans as follows: discriminating and recognizing individual humans; perceiving human emotions; interpreting our attentional states and goals; using referential communication (perceiving human signals or sending signals to humans); and engaging in social learning with humans (e.g., local enhancement, demonstration and social referencing). We focused on different species of domestic mammals for which literature on the subject is available, namely, cats, cattle, dogs, ferrets, goats, horses, pigs, and sheep. The results show that some species have remarkable abilities to recognize us or to detect and interpret the emotions or signals sent by humans. For example, sheep and horses can recognize the face of their keeper in photographs, dogs can react to our smells of fear, and pigs can follow our pointing gestures. Nevertheless, the studies are unequally distributed across species: there are many studies in animals that live closely with humans, such as dogs, but little is known about livestock animals, such as cattle and pigs. However, on the basis of existing data, no obvious links have emerged between the cognitive abilities of animals toward humans and their ecological characteristics or the history and reasons for their domestication. This review encourages continuing and expanding this type of research to more abilities and species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Plotine Jardat
- CNRS, IFCE, INRAE, University of Tours, PRC, 37380, Nouzilly, France.,Department of Biology, École Normale Supérieure de Lyon, University of Lyon, Lyon, France.,Ecole Nationale Vétérinaire d'Alfort (ENVA), Maisons-Alfort, France
| | - Léa Lansade
- CNRS, IFCE, INRAE, University of Tours, PRC, 37380, Nouzilly, France.
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Horses Failed to Learn from Humans by Observation. Animals (Basel) 2020; 10:ani10020221. [PMID: 32013218 PMCID: PMC7070367 DOI: 10.3390/ani10020221] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/13/2019] [Revised: 01/25/2020] [Accepted: 01/27/2020] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Animals can acquire new behavior through both individual and social learning. Several studies have investigated horses' ability to utilize inter-species (human demonstrator) social learning with conflicting results. In this study, we repeat a previous study, which found that horses had the ability to learn from observing humans performing an instrumental task, but we include a control for stimulus enhancement. One human demonstrator and thirty horses were included, and the horses were randomly assigned to one of three treatments: (A) full human demonstration, (B) partial human demonstration, and (C) no human demonstration. The task was for the horses to touch an object situated 1 m away from a feed box, to open this feed box, and thereby obtain a food reward. The success of each horse, the behavior directed towards the apparatus and the human, and behaviors indicative of frustration were observed. The results showed that horses observing a full and partial human demonstration were not more successful in solving the instrumental task than horses not observing any demonstration. Horses that did not solve the task expressed more box- and human-oriented behavior compared to successful horses, which may be an indication of motivation to solve the task and/or frustration from being unable to solve the task.
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Henriksson J, Sauveroche M, Roth LSV. Effects of size and personality on social learning and human-directed behaviour in horses (Equus caballus). Anim Cogn 2019; 22:1001-1011. [PMID: 31312981 PMCID: PMC6834737 DOI: 10.1007/s10071-019-01291-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/22/2018] [Revised: 06/23/2019] [Accepted: 07/09/2019] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
Due to our long history of living in close association with horses, these animals are suggested to have enhanced skills in understanding and communicating with humans. Today, horses have become important to humans for sport and leisure and their understanding of human behaviour and their human-directed behaviour are therefore of great importance. In this study, we investigated 22 horses in a human contact-seeking experiment where they were presented with an unsolvable problem and a detour experiment with a human demonstrator. The unsolvable problem consisted of pieces of carrot in a closed bucket and the detour resembled the shape of V. Additionally, personality traits of the participating horses were assessed. Interestingly, the full-sized horses (N = 11) showed more human-related behaviours when presented with an unsolvable problem compared to before the carrots were made unreachable (p = 0.033), while the ponies (N = 11) did not. However, neither the full-sized horses nor the ponies were significantly more successful in the detour after human demonstrations than in control trials. When comparing the two experiments, we found the task-oriented behaviour in the detour test to positively correlate with human proximity and eye contact-seeking behaviour towards humans during the unsolvable problem in the contact-seeking test. Interestingly, again this was only true for the full-sized horses (p < 0.05) and not for the ponies. From the horse personality questionnaire results, the traits excitability and anxiousness revealed strong negative correlations with human-directed behaviour in the contact-seeking experiment (p < 0.05). Hence, size (full-sized horse/pony) and personality influenced the human-related behaviours of the horses and we suggest a future focus on these aspects to deepen our understanding of human-horse communication.
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Affiliation(s)
- Josefine Henriksson
- IFM Biology, AVIAN Behavioural Genomics and Physiology Group, Linköping University, 581 83, Linköping, Sweden
| | - Mathilde Sauveroche
- IFM Biology, AVIAN Behavioural Genomics and Physiology Group, Linköping University, 581 83, Linköping, Sweden
| | - Lina S V Roth
- IFM Biology, AVIAN Behavioural Genomics and Physiology Group, Linköping University, 581 83, Linköping, Sweden.
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Nawroth C, Langbein J, Coulon M, Gabor V, Oesterwind S, Benz-Schwarzburg J, von Borell E. Farm Animal Cognition-Linking Behavior, Welfare and Ethics. Front Vet Sci 2019; 6:24. [PMID: 30838218 PMCID: PMC6383588 DOI: 10.3389/fvets.2019.00024] [Citation(s) in RCA: 44] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/27/2018] [Accepted: 01/21/2019] [Indexed: 12/04/2022] Open
Abstract
Farm animal welfare is a major concern for society and food production. To more accurately evaluate animal farming in general and to avoid exposing farm animals to poor welfare situations, it is necessary to understand not only their behavioral but also their cognitive needs and capacities. Thus, general knowledge of how farm animals perceive and interact with their environment is of major importance for a range of stakeholders, from citizens to politicians to cognitive ethologists to philosophers. This review aims to outline the current state of farm animal cognition research and focuses on ungulate livestock species, such as cattle, horses, pigs and small ruminants, and reflects upon a defined set of cognitive capacities (physical cognition: categorization, numerical ability, object permanence, reasoning, tool use; social cognition: individual discrimination and recognition, communication with humans, social learning, attribution of attention, prosociality, fairness). We identify a lack of information on certain aspects of physico-cognitive capacities in most farm animal species, such as numerosity discrimination and object permanence. This leads to further questions on how livestock comprehend their physical environment and understand causal relationships. Increasing our knowledge in this area will facilitate efforts to adjust husbandry systems and enrichment items to meet the needs and preferences of farm animals. Research in the socio-cognitive domain indicates that ungulate livestock possess sophisticated mental capacities, such as the discrimination between, and recognition of, conspecifics as well as human handlers using multiple modalities. Livestock also react to very subtle behavioral cues of conspecifics and humans. These socio-cognitive capacities can impact human-animal interactions during management practices and introduce ethical considerations on how to treat livestock in general. We emphasize the importance of gaining a better understanding of how livestock species interact with their physical and social environments, as this information can improve housing and management conditions and can be used to evaluate the use and treatment of animals during production.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christian Nawroth
- Institute of Behavioural Physiology, Leibniz Institute for Farm Animal Biology (FBN), Dummerstorf, Germany
- Centre for Proper Housing of Ruminants and Pigs, Federal Food Safety and Veterinary Office, Agroscope Tänikon, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Jan Langbein
- Institute of Behavioural Physiology, Leibniz Institute for Farm Animal Biology (FBN), Dummerstorf, Germany
| | | | - Vivian Gabor
- Department of Animal Sciences, University of Goettingen, Goettingen, Germany
| | - Susann Oesterwind
- Institute of Behavioural Physiology, Leibniz Institute for Farm Animal Biology (FBN), Dummerstorf, Germany
- Faculty of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, University of Rostock, Rostock, Germany
| | - Judith Benz-Schwarzburg
- Unit for Ethics and Human-Animal Studies, Messerli Research Institute, Vetmeduni Vienna, University of Vienna, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Eberhard von Borell
- Institute of Agricultural and Nutritional Sciences, Martin-Luther-University Halle-Wittenberg, Halle, Germany
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