Lateralized righting behavior in the tortoise (Testudo hermanni)

Stancher, Gionata; Clara, Elena; Regolin, Lucia; Vallortígara, Giorgio

doi:10.1016/j.bbr.2006.06.023

Cited by 49 publications

(36 citation statements)

References 20 publications

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“…First, the observed instances of resting while standing on the right (M 5 7.353, SD 5 3.219) and left (M 5 7.647, SD 5 3.790) leg were tallied for each bird and compared with a paired samples t-test (t(16) 5 À0.459, P 5 0.652) [cf., Hoffman et al, 2006]. Additionally, a side preference index was calculated [(RÀL)/(R1L)] from these scores and compared with chance in a one-sample t-test (M 5 0.000, SD 5 0.287; test value 5 0, t(16) 5 0.004, P 5 0.997) [cf., Lonsdorf and Hopkins, 2005;Stancher et al, 2006]. Neither test revealed a flock-level lateral bias in resting leg stance.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 65%

Why do flamingos stand on one leg?

Anderson

Williams

2009

Zoo Biology

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A series of observational studies of captive Caribbean flamingos Phoenicopterus ruber were conducted to determine why flamingos rest on one leg. While frequently asked by the general public, this basic question has remained unanswered by the scientific community. Here we suggest that the latency of flamingos to initiate forward locomotion following resting on one leg is significantly longer than following resting on two, discounting the possibility that unipedal resting reduces muscle fatigue or enhances predatory escape. Additionally, we demonstrate that flamingos do not display lateral preferences at the individual or group levels when resting on one leg, with each bird dividing its resting time across both legs. We show that while flamingos prefer resting on one leg to two regardless of location, the percentage of birds resting on one leg is significantly higher among birds standing in the water than among those on land. Finally, we demonstrate a negative relationship between temperature and the percentage of observed birds resting on one leg, such that resting on one leg decreases as temperature rises. Results strongly suggest that unipedal resting aids flamingos in thermoregulation.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 65%

Why do flamingos stand on one leg?

Anderson

Williams

2009

Zoo Biology

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“…In the case of reptiles, Robins, Chen, Beasley, and Dunlop (2005) found that right-eye lateralization for predatory responses, which are consequently to the right, developed as omate dragon lizards became more familiar with prey in the experimental context, or, in other words, as circumstances became more routine. In another example in reptiles, Stancher, Clara, Regolin, and Vallortigara (2006) found a significant preference for the right side to play the primary role in the righting responses of tortoises that had been purposely inverted.…”

Section: Rightward Action Asymmetries In Vertebrates Other Than Marinmentioning

confidence: 95%

Evolution of the strongest vertebrate rightward action asymmetries: Marine mammal sidedness and human handedness.

MacNeilage

2014

Psychological Bulletin

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Marine mammals and humans have the strongest manifestations of what is apparently a vertebrate-wide tendency toward a rightward action asymmetry associated with routine behavior. Marine mammal asymmetries usually involve whole-body actions associated with feeding. The human-like strength of these asymmetries may result from a problem of external aquatic support for the reactive component of the demanding lateral maneuvers of large marine mammals in daily pursuit of prey. Our asymmetrical primate heritage may also have begun with a rightward whole-body asymmetry, in prosimians, perhaps also resulting from problems of support for the reactive component of action; in this case arising from the arboreal habitat (and paradoxically including left-handedness). Monkeys and apes (simians) subsequently added right-sided adaptations for manipulation, bimanual coordination, bipedalism, throwing, and manual communication, most importantly by distal elaboration of limb function. The strength of human right-handedness may result partly from further elaboration of these simian action adaptations and partly from an evolving cognitive superstructure for tool use and language.

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“…temperature (Elnitsky & Claussen 2006). Both righting behaviour (Ashe 1970;Wassersug & Izumi-Kurotani 1993;Rivera et al 2004;Stancher et al 2006) and the evolution of shell morphology (Rouault & Blanc 1978;Claude et al 2003;Myers et al 2006) of turtles have been studied recently. An example of their interaction is the sexual dimorphism of species where males are often overturned during combats (Bonnet et al 2001;Willemsen & Hailey 2003;Mann et al 2006), and their shell has adapted to facilitate righting.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Geometry and self-righting of turtles

2007

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Terrestrial animals with rigid shells face imminent danger when turned upside down. A rich variety of righting strategies of beetle and turtle species have been described, but the exact role of the shell's geometry in righting is so far unknown. These strategies are often based on active mechanisms, e.g. most beetles selfright via motion of their legs or wings; flat, aquatic turtles use their muscular neck to flip back. On the other hand, highly domed, terrestrial turtles with short limbs and necks have virtually no active control: here shape itself may serve as a fundamental tool. Based on field data gathered on a broad spectrum of aquatic and terrestrial turtle species we develop a geometric model of the shell. Inspired by recent mathematical results, we demonstrate that a simple mechanical classification of the model is closely linked to the animals' righting strategy. Specifically, we show that the exact geometry of highly domed terrestrial species is close to optimal for self-righting, and the shell's shape is the predominant factor of their ability to flip back. Our study illustrates how evolution solved a far-from-trivial geometrical problem and equipped some turtles with monostatic shells: beautiful forms, which rarely appear in nature otherwise.

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Lateralized righting behavior in the tortoise (Testudo hermanni)

Cited by 49 publications

References 20 publications

Why do flamingos stand on one leg?

Why do flamingos stand on one leg?

Evolution of the strongest vertebrate rightward action asymmetries: Marine mammal sidedness and human handedness.

Geometry and self-righting of turtles

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