Are domesticated animals dumber than their wild relatives? A comprehensive review on the domestication effects on animal cognitive performance

Ferreira, Vitor Hugo Bessa; Lansade, Léa; Calandreau, Ludovic; Cunha, Felipe; Jensen, Per

doi:10.1016/j.neubiorev.2023.105407

Cited by 3 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 159 publications

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“…The second one was to broaden our knowledge of the cognitive abilities of domesticated birds compared to non-domesticated species, since the former are generally expected to be less capable due to arti cial selection. (Ferreira et al 2023).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Transitive reasoning in the adult domestic hen in a six-term series task

Degrande,

Amichaud,

Piégu

et al. 2024

Preprint

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Transitive inference (TI) is a disjunctive syllogism that allows an individual to indirectly infer a relationship between two components, by knowing their respective relationship to a third component (if A > B and B > C then A > C). The common procedure is the 5-terms series task, in which individuals are tested on indirect, unlearned relations. Few bird species have been tested for TI to date, which limits our knowledge of the phylogenetic spread of such reasoning ability. Here we tested TI in adult laying hens using a more solid methodology, the 6-terms series task, which has not been tested in poultry so far. Six hens were trained to learn direct relationships in a sequence of six arbitrary items (A > B > C > D > E > F) in a hybrid training procedure. Then, 12 testing sessions were run, comprising 3 non-rewarded inference trials each: BD, BE, and CE. All subjects showed TI within 12 inference trials and were capable of TI whatever the relative distance between the items in the series. We found that TI performance was not impacted by the reinforcement ratios of the items for most individuals; thus, making it harder to support a purely associative-based resolution of the task. We suggest that TI is based on the same cognitive processes in poultry (Galloanserae) than in modern flying birds (Neoaves), and that the cognitive strategy to solve the task might be driven mainly by individual parameters within species. These results contribute to a better understanding of transitive reasoning in birds.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Transitive reasoning in the adult domestic hen in a six-term series task

Degrande,

Amichaud,

Piégu

et al. 2024

Preprint

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show abstract

“…Today, there are over 576 recognized goat breeds worldwide, with 96 originating from Africa. This spread reflects an incredible array of adaptive features and benefits including meat and milk production as well as the fiber and mohair these goats provide [ 12 , 13 , 14 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Review on Indigenous Goats of East Africa: A Case for Conservation and Management

Kichamu,

Astuti,

Wanjala

et al. 2024

Biology

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Indigenous goats are important in the livelihoods of rural households in East African countries. This is due to their ability to produce and reproduce in different environments and climatic conditions. Even though these indigenous goats are important, there is little available information on the genetic characterization of these breeds in Africa and at the international level. This paper reviews the status of indigenous goats, highlighting their production systems, phenotypic and genetic characteristics, and genetic diversity, and proposes potential ways for sustainable improvement and conservation in East African countries. Most households use traditional production systems with various uncharacterized goat breeds and ecotypes, which are hence named after the tribe or locality in which they are found. Most of these goats are classified as small East African breeds, with significant variability in morphological features. Some of the challenges to goat production in this region are indiscriminate crossbreeding, lack of pedigree records, parasites and disease incidences, low-quality pastures, and low levels of management. There is a need for a collaborative approach amongst the actors in goat breeding value chains as well as integrating modern genomic tools into breeding programs to enhance selection. This will ensure the resilience and sustainability of these unique indigenous goat populations in East Africa

show abstract

Transitive reasoning in the adult domestic hen in a six-term series task

Degrande,

Amichaud,

Piégu

et al. 2024

Anim Cogn

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Transitive inference (TI) is a disjunctive syllogism that allows an individual to indirectly infer a relationship between two components, by knowing their respective relationship to a third component (if A > B and B > C, then A > C). The common procedure is the 5-term series task, in which individuals are tested on indirect, unlearned relations. Few bird species have been tested for TI to date, which limits our knowledge of the phylogenetic spread of such reasoning ability. Here we tested TI in adult laying hens using a more solid methodology, the 6-term series task, which has not been tested in poultry so far. Six hens were trained to learn direct relationships in a sequence of six arbitrary items (A > B > C > D > E > F) in a hybrid training procedure. Then, 12 testing sessions were run, comprising 3 non-rewarded inference trials each: BD, BE, and CE. All subjects showed TI within 12 inference trials and were capable of TI whatever the relative distance between the items in the series. We found that TI performance was not impacted by the reinforcement ratios of the items for most individuals, making it harder to support a purely associative-based resolution of the task. We suggest that TI is based on the same cognitive processes in poultry (Galloanserae) than in modern flying birds (Neoaves), and that the cognitive strategy to solve the task might be driven mainly by individual parameters within species. These results contribute to a better understanding of transitive inference processes in birds.

show abstract

Are domesticated animals dumber than their wild relatives? A comprehensive review on the domestication effects on animal cognitive performance

Cited by 3 publications

References 159 publications

Transitive reasoning in the adult domestic hen in a six-term series task

Transitive reasoning in the adult domestic hen in a six-term series task

A Review on Indigenous Goats of East Africa: A Case for Conservation and Management

Transitive reasoning in the adult domestic hen in a six-term series task

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