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Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons

Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Animal Studies

2019

Communication

Articles 1 - 2 of 2

Full-Text Articles in Social and Behavioral Sciences

Habitat Structure And Alarm Call Dialects In Gunnison's Prairie Dog (Cynomys Gunnisoni), Bianca S. Perla, C. N. Slobodchikoff Sep 2019

Habitat Structure And Alarm Call Dialects In Gunnison's Prairie Dog (Cynomys Gunnisoni), Bianca S. Perla, C. N. Slobodchikoff

Con Slobodchikoff, PhD

We examined the relationship between habitat structure and alarm call characteristics in six colonies of Gunnison’s prairie dogs (Cynomys gunnisoni) near Flagstaff, Arizona, before and after a mid-summer vegetation change. We found significant differences in alarm call characteristics between colonies, confirming the existence of alarm call dialects. Differences in frequency components but not temporal components of calls were associated with differences in habitat structure. Playback experiments revealed that differences in alarm call structure affected acoustic transmission of calls through the local habitat. Thus, we identify habitat structure as one factor that may contribute to alarm call differences between colonies of …


Thinking Chickens: A Review Of Cognition, Emotion, And Behavior In The Domestic Chicken, Lori Marino Sep 2019

Thinking Chickens: A Review Of Cognition, Emotion, And Behavior In The Domestic Chicken, Lori Marino

Lori Marino, PhD

Domestic chickens are members of an order, Aves, which has been the focus of a revolution in our understanding of neuroanatomical, cognitive, and social complexity. At least some birds are now known to be on par with many mammals in terms of their level of intelligence, emotional sophistication, and social interaction. Yet, views of chickens have largely remained unrevised by this new evidence. In this paper, I examine the peer-reviewed scientific data on the leading edge of cognition, emotions, personality, and sociality in chickens, exploring such areas as self-awareness, cognitive bias, social learning and self-control, and comparing their abilities in …