Partner Choice in Raven (Corvus corax) Cooperation.

ABSTRACT: Although social animals frequently make decisions about when or with whom to cooperate, little is known about the underlying mechanisms of partner choice. Most previous studies compared different dyads' performances, though did not allow an actual choice among partners. We tested eleven ravens, Corvus corax, in triads, giving them first the choice to cooperate with either a highly familiar or a rather unfamiliar partner and, second, with either a friend or a non-friend using a cooperative string-pulling task. In either test, the ravens had a second choice and could cooperate with the other partner, given that this one had not pulled the string in the meantime. We show that during the experiments, these partner ravens indeed learn to wait and inhibit pulling, respectively. Moreover, the res

SUBMITTER: Asakawa-Haas K 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4902252 | biostudies-literature | 2016

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature