Freely foraging macaques value information in ambiguous terrains.

ABSTRACT: Among non-human primates, macaques are recognized for thriving in a wide range of novel environments. Previous studies show macaques' affinity for new information. However, little is known about how information-seeking manifests in their spatial navigation pattern in ambiguous foraging terrains, where the location and distribution of the food are unknown. We investigated the spatial pattern of foraging in free-moving macaques in an ambiguous terrain, lacking sensory cues about the reward distribution. Rewards were hidden in a uniform grid of woodchip piles spread over a 15 sqm open terrain and spatially distributed according to different patchy distributions. We observed Lévy-like random walks in macaques' spatial search patterns, balancing relocation effort with exploration. Encountering

SUBMITTER: Shahidi N 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12783851 | biostudies-literature | 2026 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature