Lack of conformity to new local dietary preferences in migrating captive chimpanzees.

ABSTRACT: Conformity to the behavioural preferences of others can have powerful effects on intragroup behavioural homogeneity in humans, but evidence in animals remains minimal. In this study, we took advantage of circumstances in which individuals or pairs of captive chimpanzees, Pan troglodytes, were 'migrated' between groups, to investigate whether immigrants would conform to a new dietary population preference experienced in the group they entered, an effect suggested by recent fieldwork. Such 'migratory-minority' chimpanzees were trained to avoid one of two differently coloured foods made unpalatable, before 'migrating' to, and then observing, a 'local-majority' group consume a different food colour. Both migratory-minority and local-majority chimpanzees displayed social learning, spendi

SUBMITTER: Vale GL 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5705092 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature