Wild jackdaws are wary of objects that violate expectations of animacy.

ABSTRACT: Nature is composed of self-propelled, animate agents and inanimate objects. Laboratory studies have shown that human infants and a few species discriminate between animate and inanimate objects. This ability is assumed to have evolved to support social cognition and filial imprinting, but its ecological role for wild animals has never been examined. An alternative, functional explanation is that discriminating stimuli based on their potential for animacy helps animals distinguish between harmless and threatening stimuli. Using remote-controlled experimental stimulus presentations, we tested if wild jackdaws (Corvus monedula) respond fearfully to stimuli that violate expectations for movement. Breeding pairs (N = 27) were presented at their nests with moving and non-moving mod

SUBMITTER: Greggor AL 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6227974 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature