Article
Biology
Shay Rotics, Tim Clutton-Brock
Summary: The study found that in larger groups, inequality in contributions to cooperative activities and the frequency of free riding increased. This was partly due to increased differences in contributions between helpers of different sex and age categories in larger groups. The increase in inequality in contributions was associated with reductions in total provisioning conducted by the group, which in turn led to reductions in pup growth and survival.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE ROYAL SOCIETY B-BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES
(2021)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Kimberley J. Mathot, Josue D. Arteaga-Torres, Jan J. Wijmenga
Summary: Individual variation in risk-taking behavior in black-capped chickadees is not associated with differences in annual survival, suggesting that multiple mechanisms may simultaneously shape risk-taking behavior with minimal impact on overall survival.
ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE
(2022)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Anissa Kennedy, Tianfei Peng, Simone M. Glaser, Melissa Linn, Susanne Foitzik, Christoph Grueter
Summary: Communication is essential for social animals, but the decision to use social information or private information in honey bees may be linked to differences in sensory perception. While experienced bees often prefer private information over social cues, the decision-making process might also depend on peripheral processes of perception rather than higher-order brain centres.
Article
Agriculture, Dairy & Animal Science
Isaac Planas-Sitja, Jean-Louis Deneubourg, Denis L. J. Lafontaine, Ludivine Wacheul, Adam L. Cronin
Summary: Animal personality refers to the differences in behavior and actions among individuals, which is important for group survival in group-living animals. A study on American cockroaches found that bold individuals have upregulated genes associated with sensory activity and aggressive behavior, and social context can modulate gene expression related to bold/shy characteristics. Cockroaches could be valuable for studying genetic mechanisms underlying social behavior evolution.
Article
Agriculture, Dairy & Animal Science
Xinyu Zhang, Xue Wang, Wei Wang, Renxin Xu, Chunlin Li, Feng Zhang
Summary: This study found that boldness and exploration in Japanese quail have a significant impact on food-scratching behavior and food intake. Proactive individuals with bold and explorative traits scratched for food more frequently and for longer periods, leading to increased food intake during foraging. The correlation between personality traits and food intake varied over time and was influenced by the quail's sex.
Article
Computer Science, Information Systems
Edwin Mouda Ye, Jia Tina Du, Preben Hansen, Helen Ashman, Marianna Sigala, Songshan (Sam) Huang
Summary: The study revealed the complexity of information behavior among group travelers, with most travelers voluntarily assuming different roles in CIB, identifying six distinct CIB roles and classifying the distribution of roles into five patterns.
INFORMATION PROCESSING & MANAGEMENT
(2021)
Article
Ecology
Selin Ersoy, Christine E. Beardsworth, Anne Dekinga, Marcel T. J. van der Meer, Theunis Piersma, Ton G. G. Groothuis, Allert Bijleveld
Summary: Individual differences in behavior, particularly exploration speed, are associated with foraging tactics and diet in red knots. Faster explorers tend to engage in visual foraging, while slower explorers mainly consume hard-shelled prey. These findings suggest that personality traits play a role in shaping foraging strategies and dietary preferences in birds.
JOURNAL OF ANIMAL ECOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Ahana Aurora Fernandez, Christian Schmidt, Stefanie Schmidt, Bernal Rodriguez-Herrera, Mirjam Knoernschild
Summary: Bats are highly social animals, relying on vocal communication to maintain group cohesion and stability. The Honduran white bat exhibits an unusual social structure compared to other tent-roosting species.
Article
Ecology
Karolina Argote, Cecile H. Albert, Benoit Geslin, Charlotte Biryol, Mathieu Santonja
Summary: Collembola can perceive and seek better litter quality, but litter quality does not affect their foraging behavior to select high-quality resources.
ECOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2023)
Article
Ecology
Karolina Argote, Cecile H. Albert, Benoit Geslin, Charlotte Biryol, Mathieu Santonja
Summary: This study investigated the ability of Collembola to perceive and seek better litter quality. The results showed that litter quality plays a relevant role in Collembola demographic parameters, but does not affect foraging behavior to select high-quality resources.
ECOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2023)
Article
Agriculture, Dairy & Animal Science
Meng-Meng Chen, Yu-Heng Zhang, Yi-Mei Tai, Xi Wang
Summary: This study provides insight into the importance of vocal communication in animal group cooperation and decision-making, and identifies the influence of sex and social centrality on vocalizations.
Article
Ecology
Arik Kershenbaum, Vlad Demartsev, David E. Gammon, Eli Geffen, Morgan L. Gustison, Amiyaal Ilany, Adriano R. Lameira
Summary: Information complexity in animals is an indicator of advanced communication and intricate socio-ecology. Estimating Zipf's law coefficient using entropy approach is more accurate than the traditional method, providing a robust way to investigate the evolution of communication systems in animals.
METHODS IN ECOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2021)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Megan Chiovaro, Leah C. Windsor, Alistair Windsor, Alexandra Paxton
Summary: The study found that social cohesion on Syrian social media is related to the frequency of various events. When considering outward events, the connection between negative events and online social cohesion weakened.
Article
Ecology
Fabian Arnold, Michael S. Staniszewski, Lisa Pelzl, Claudia Ramenda, Manfred Gahr, Susanne Hoffmann
Summary: Zebra finches flying in a wind tunnel use both vocal and visual communication to orientate themselves within the flock, and are able to enhance their use of one form of communication over another depending on circumstance.
NATURE ECOLOGY & EVOLUTION
(2022)
Article
Agriculture, Dairy & Animal Science
Liesbeth G. W. Van Damme, Bart Ampe, Evelyne Delezie, Frank A. M. Tuyttens
Summary: Housing breeding does in group pens can lead to skin injuries and stress due to maternal protective behavior and hierarchy fights. Single-litter cages and delayed grouping of does with their litters can reduce aggression, but hierarchy fights still occur. This study evaluated the effects of group size and cage enrichment on doe and kit injuries and social behavior, finding that reducing group size and providing cage enrichment had limited effectiveness in reducing aggression.
Article
Biology
Tobit Dehnen, Josh J. Arbon, Damien R. Farine, Neeltje J. Boogert
Summary: In animal societies, individuals differ in their ability to win agonistic interactions, resulting in dominance hierarchies. Factors such as intrinsic attributes, resource value asymmetry, winner-loser effects, interaction-outcome history, and third-party support can influence interaction outcomes and individuals' positions in dominance hierarchies. These factors are unlikely to act independently, but instead, form feedback loops and feed-forward mechanisms that determine dominance outcomes within and between generations. Understanding these factors and their interactions is crucial for studying dominance dynamics in animal groups.
BIOLOGICAL REVIEWS
(2022)
Article
Ecology
Ettore Camerlenghi, Alexandra McQueen, Kaspar Delhey, Carly N. Cook, Sjouke A. Kingma, Damien R. Farine, Anne Peters, Noa Pinter-Wollman
Summary: Multilevel societies are considered one of the most complex forms of animal societies, with most research focusing on mammals. This study proposes that multilevel societies could also be common in cooperatively breeding birds, and provides evidence through comparing and analyzing bird species in Australia and New Zealand.
Article
Biology
S. Wild, M. Chimento, K. McMahon, D. R. Farine, B. C. Sheldon, L. M. Aplin
Summary: This study tracks the cultural diffusion of foraging behaviors in great tits and finds that the birds can socially learn and recombine skills, but acquisition is not entirely through social learning. Instead, birds reconstruct the complete solution step by step. Although singular cultural traditions do not emerge, subpopulations of birds share preferences for behavioral variants.
PHILOSOPHICAL TRANSACTIONS OF THE ROYAL SOCIETY B-BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES
(2022)
Article
Biology
Tobit Dehnen, Danai Papageorgiou, Brendah Nyaguthii, Wismer Cherono, Julia Penndorf, Neeltje J. Boogert, Damien R. Farine
Summary: Male vulturine guineafowl strategically exhibit higher-cost aggressive interactions toward individuals with lower ranks, while lower-cost aggressive interactions are directed toward individuals further down the hierarchy. These results support the hypothesis that the costs associated with different interaction types can determine their expression in social groups with steep dominance hierarchies.
PHILOSOPHICAL TRANSACTIONS OF THE ROYAL SOCIETY B-BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES
(2022)
Article
Ecology
Peng He, James A. Klarevas-Irby, Danai Papageorgiou, Charlotte Christensen, Eli D. Strauss, Damien R. Farine
Summary: GPS-based tracking is widely used in studying wild social animals. This study provides recommendations for sampling strategies in GPS-based tracking studies of animal societies, taking into account the trade-offs between sampling coverage, duration, and frequency. The study demonstrates the effects of GPS error on distance inference and how the trade-off between sampling frequency and duration can impact inferences of social interactions. It also highlights the influence of sampling coverage on measures of social behavior. The findings offer practical advice for designing GPS-based field studies and emphasize the importance of optimal deployment decisions.
METHODS IN ECOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2023)
Article
Biology
Quinn M. R. Webber, Gregory F. F. Albery, Damien R. R. Farine, Noa Pinter-Wollman, Nitika Sharma, Orr Spiegel, Eric Vander Wal, Kezia Manlove
Summary: Spatial and social behaviour are closely linked in an animal's biology, with implications for ecological and evolutionary processes. The 'spatial-social interface' is defined as the intersection of social and spatial aspects of individuals. Shared theory, vocabulary, and methods are used to connect spatial and social processes. The review integrates social and spatial behavioural ecology and identifies testable hypotheses at the spatial-social interface.
BIOLOGICAL REVIEWS
(2023)
Article
Ecology
Joe P. P. Woodman, Ella F. F. Cole, Josh A. A. Firth, Christopher M. M. Perrins, Ben C. C. Sheldon
Summary: Age has significant effects on behavior, survival, and reproduction. Age-assortative mating is common, but the mechanisms driving it are not well understood. This study compares breeding data from great tits and mute swans to investigate the contributions of pair retention, cohort age structure, and active age-related mate selection to age assortment. The results show that the drivers of age assortment differ between the species, likely due to their different life histories and demographic differences. Understanding these mechanisms and their consequences is important for wild populations.
JOURNAL OF ANIMAL ECOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Mauricio Cantor, Damien R. Farine, Susan Alberts
Summary: Interactions between humans and nature often have negative consequences, and behavioral and environmental changes can turn cooperative interactions into conflicts, threatening the survival of both species involved. A study of artisanal fishers and wild dolphins targeting migratory mullets reveals that foraging synchrony is crucial for the success of both predators. The dolphins herd the mullet schools towards the fishers' nets, providing them with more prey, while the fishers' casting behavior must match the dolphins' foraging cues. However, declines in mullet availability are jeopardizing this cooperation and pushing it towards extinction.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
(2023)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Mary Jo Cantoria, Elaheh Alizadeh, Janani Ravi, Reeba P. Varghese, Nawat Bunnag, Kelvin W. Pond, Arminja N. Kettenbach, Yashi Ahmed, Andrew L. Paek, John J. Tyson, Konstantin Doubrovinski, Ethan Lee, Curtis A. Thorne
Summary: In this study, it was found that the cellular response to Wnt ligands is proportional to their concentration. Positive feedback between the scaffold protein Axin and the kinase GSK3 resulted in bistable behavior of the destruction complex. Experimental evidence showed that the cellular concentration of beta-catenin exhibited an all-or-none response with sustained memory.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
(2023)
Article
Biology
Mina Ogino, Eli D. Strauss, Damien R. Farine
Summary: The study of how individual experience and population evolutionary history shape emergent patterns in animal collectives is still a major gap in collective behavior research. Mismatched timescales between the processes that shape individual contributions and collective actions pose conceptual and methodological challenges. This article briefly outlines these challenges and discusses existing approaches that have provided insights into factors shaping individual contributions. A case study on vulturine guineafowl shows that different temporal definitions can result in different assignments of individuals into groups, which can impact the determination of individuals' social history and conclusions on the effects of the social environment on collective actions.
PHILOSOPHICAL TRANSACTIONS OF THE ROYAL SOCIETY B-BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES
(2023)
Article
Biology
Kristina B. Beck, Ben C. Sheldon, Josh A. Firth
Summary: The emergence and spread of novel behaviors through social learning can result in rapid changes at the population level, as social connections shape information flow. However, little is known about how information flow is influenced by individuals' learning mechanisms. By comparing four different learning mechanisms on wild great tit networks, we found that individuals with increased social connectivity and reduced social clustering acquired new behaviors faster. However, when the adoption of behaviors depended on the ratio of social connections to informed versus uninformed individuals, social connectivity had no impact on the order of acquisition. Additionally, specific learning mechanisms were found to limit behavioral spread within networks.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Marta Maziarz, Richard K. Broughton, Kristina B. Beck, Robert A. Robinson, Ben C. Sheldon
Summary: Human activity has affected natural resources and the species that depend on them, resulting in changes in interspecific competition dynamics. This study used automated data collection to examine competition among species with different population trends. Specifically, it focused on the foraging behavior of subordinate marsh tits among socially and numerically dominant blue tits and great tits. The findings showed that marsh tits were less likely to join larger groups of heterospecifics and accessed food less frequently in larger groups. This suggests that subordinate species exhibit temporal avoidance of dominant heterospecifics but have limited spatial avoidance, indicating partial reduction in interspecific competition.
ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE
(2023)
Article
Ecology
Kristina B. Beck, Damien R. Farine, Josh A. Firth, Ben C. Sheldon
Summary: The structure of animal societies is influenced by factors such as habitat configuration and population size. In this study, the researchers investigated how population size and habitat configuration affect the social structure of great tits. They found that population size was consistent within locations and predicted by habitat configuration, and that it influenced social structure as measured by network metrics. Additionally, the researchers discovered that social decisions made by individuals played a significant role in shaping social network features.
JOURNAL OF ANIMAL ECOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Mina Ogino, Adriana A. A. Maldonado-Chaparro, Lucy M. M. Aplin, Damien R. R. Farine
Summary: Individuals exhibit consistent behavioral variation when interacting with others, which may contribute to group-specific patterns and between-group differences. However, it is unclear how external factors influence group-level social structures and whether there are consistent between-group differences after accounting for these factors. This study used automated tracking to analyze the social interactions and networks of zebra finch colonies, and found that external factors significantly influenced network structure. Nonetheless, there were still consistent between-group differences in social structure even after controlling for these factors.
ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE
(2023)