Veille Scientifique

Abstract This field experiment examined whether the well-documented benefit of spaced over massed training for humans and other animals generalizes to horses. Twenty-nine randomly selected horses (Equus ferus caballus) repeatedly encountered a novel obstacle-crossing task while under saddle. Horses were randomly assigned to the spaced-training condition (2 min work, 2 min rest, 2 min work, 2 min rest) or the massed-training condition (4 min work, 4 min rest). Total training time per session and total rest per session were held constant. Days between sessions (M = 3) were held as consistent as possible given the constraints of conducting research on a working ranch and safety–threatening weather conditions. During

Ethology, EarlyView.

Abstract The cognitive mechanisms causing intraspecific behavioural differences between wild and captive animals remain poorly understood. Although diminished neophobia, resulting from a safer environment and more “free” time, has been proposed to underlie these differences among settings, less is known about how captivity influences exploration tendency. Here, we refer to the combination of reduced neophobia and increased interest in exploring novelty as “curiosity”, which we systematically compared across seven groups of captive and wild vervet monkeys (Chlorocebus pygerythrus) by exposing them to a test battery of eight novel stimuli. In the wild sample, we included both monkeys habituated to human

Ethology, EarlyView.

Abstract The exchange of prosocial behaviors such as grooming may be affected by several factors, including the social structure and social relationships of the individuals. However, studies on the reciprocity ...

Ethology, EarlyView.

Abstract This small-scale study aimed to preliminarily explore the potential of leadership in group movements in cattle for improving uniformity of grazing distribution of the group on grazing land. We ...

Abstract Innovative problem solving is considered a hallmark measure of behavioral flexibility as it describes behavior by which an animal manipulates its environment in a novel way to reach a goal. Elephants are a highly social taxa that have demonstrated a remarkable capacity for adapting to changing environments. To understand how individual differences in behavior impact expressions of innovation, we used a novel extractive foraging device comprised of three compartments to evaluate innovation in 14 captive Asian elephants. In the first phase of testing, elephants had an opportunity to learn one solution, while the second phase gave them an opportunity

Abstract Food search is guided by cues from different sensory modalities, such as olfactory and visual. In social wasps, olfaction plays a key role in locating new resources. However, while several studies have focused on the importance of odours in predation, less is known about their role during scavenging, when spatial memories become a relevant guidance mechanism. Here, we investigated whether the use of odours during carrion exploitation by Vespula germanica wasps depends on whether they are locating or relocating the resource. By means of field choice experiments, we evaluated wasp response to odours: an odour eliciting a spontaneous aversive

Abstract Yawning is an involuntary action that occurs in three phases: (1) slow mouth opening accompanied by inhalation, (2) maintaining the maximum mouth size, and (3) quick closure with exhalation. ...