Latest news with #MaxPlanckInstituteofAnimalBehaviour
Irish Examiner
22-05-2025
- Science
- Irish Examiner
Three ground-breaking studies on family lives of great apes... our nearest and dearest
Homo homini lupus est — man is a wolf to man Diogenes, 'the Cynic', rejected convention and lived in a barrel. According to historian Frederic Copleston, he did in public "what it is generally considered should be done in private — and even what should not be done in private". 'Cynic' means 'canine'; Diogenes and his followers, 'the disciples of the dog', held up the lives of animals as a model to mankind. Theirs was a moral exhortation, but studying the ways of other creatures can tell us much about ourselves. Aristotle wrote about animals, as Pliny the Elder would do four centuries later. Porphyry, famously, advocated vegetarianism: "When animals are sacrificed, harm is done to them, in that they are deprived of soul," he declared. Caligula's alleged appointment of his horse to the Senate appears, however, to have been fake news. Over the next two millennia, animals would be regarded as 'lesser folk', mere 'brute beasts', entirely unrelated to humans. 'I am no kin to the monkey and the monkey is no kin to me' a fundamentalist hymn proclaims. But the insights of Lamarck and Darwin would change that. They made us realise that the ways of animals are often remarkably similar to ours. Indeed, animal studies have helped us understand many of the peculiarities of human behaviour. Three ground-breaking papers, just published, concern the family lives of great apes... creatures which we now accept as our nearest and dearest. Researchers from the Max Planck Institute of Animal Behaviour, working at the Tai National Park in the Ivory Coast, spent almost 4,000 hours observing 50 chimpanzee mothers with infants under the age of 10. They found that 'attachment theory', developed by psychologists studying human behaviour, can be applied to chimps. Body contact between mothers and infants was one of the maternal behaviors examined in the study. Picture: Caroline Schuppli 'Attachment', the affectionate bond between a human mother and her offspring, is crucial to a youngster's subsequent mental and physical well-being. "Secure attachment arises from confidence in the caregiver's ability, nurtured by their high responsiveness." Faced with a strange situation, an infant will immediately seek the protection of its mother. But, if she is unresponsive, the child may exhibit 'disorganised attachment', characterised by aggressive or antisocial behaviour. Young chimps, the researchers found, exhibit 'organised' attachment, but they never show the 'disorganised' form. The black boxes show human attachment types. The white boxes depict the respective predicted behaviour of offspring towards mothers, given the applied assessments Another team of researchers from the Max Planck Institute have been investigating the behaviour of orang-utan females with babies in the wild. Analysing 15 year of data, they found that, just like their human counterparts, orang-utan mothers have varied and flexible approaches to caring for their infants. They "showed variation in behavioural plasticity … otherwise called maternal personality". "Mothers differed in how they modified their behaviour in response to their offspring's increasing age." They adapt their approaches as a baby develops and as circumstances change. Each mother has her own set of procedures which she uses consistently, "strengthening the notion that there is personality, specifically maternal personality, in non-human primates". 'Layered complexity', the repetition of phrases denoting particular entities, was thought to be a feature unique to human language. Now, researchers from the University of Warwick have identified similar structures in the vocalisations of orang-utans in Sumatra. This suggests that this complex linguistic trait first evolved in a common ancestor of both orang-utans and humans.
CBC
20-02-2025
- Science
- CBC
These animals can predict volcanic eruptions, massive storms and more
Social Sharing For thousands of years, humans have taken cues from animals that seem to have a sixth sense when it comes to impending natural disasters and changes in weather. Sicilian goat herders in the region surrounding the active volcano Mount Etna, for instance, have noticed behavioural changes in their goats prior to major volcanic eruptions for centuries. "But the key is: Are [the animals] sensing it early enough that we can use this information to potentially also warn people?" asks Martin Wikelski, a behavioural biologist at Max Planck Institute of Animal Behaviour, in the documentary The Secret Knowledge of Animals. Wikelski is the founder and director of the International Cooperation for Animal Research Using Space, or ICARUS, initiative: a collaborative effort to track wildlife around the world. He believes technology can enable animals to share their knowledge with humans. Hundreds of thousands of solar-powered transmitter tags have been placed on animals across the globe, and the data about their movements and behaviour is teaching scientists about how animals respond to natural disasters, weather, poaching threats and more. The Secret Knowledge of Animals shows some of these animal teachers in action. Goats can predict volcanic eruptions Wikelski wanted to test if there was any truth to the local lore about goats predicting volcanic eruptions at Mount Etna, so he began studying the goats' movements in 2011. After monitoring the region's goats prior to eight major volcanic eruptions, Wikelski and his colleagues succeeded in measuring specific movements that can accurately predict a volcanic eruption — up to 14 hours in advance. Before any sign of volcanic activity, nearby animals flee their pastures higher up the volcano and head down toward the forest. It is still not known exactly what senses the goats are using to predict these events, but Wikelski speculates that they may be able to smell certain gases like sulfur dioxide and hydrogen sulfide, which are released prior to an eruption. Similar research could also be used to help predict earthquakes. These goats know when a volcano is about to erupt – way before humans do 6 hours ago Duration 1:50 Migratory birds know how to avoid tsunamis and cyclones The bristle-thighed curlew nests in the remote tundra of Alaska and migrates to islands in the central and south Pacific for the winter. "A number of published scientific studies have shown that migratory birds are able to deviate from their migration route; they can change direction to avoid an oncoming hurricane," Frédéric Jiguet, an ornithologist at the National Museum of Natural History in Paris, says in French in The Secret Knowledge of Animals. "When the air currents get too strong, especially in cyclones, they land to avoid getting caught. So all this means that there's a certain amount of premonition around weather conditions that enables them to adapt. " Jiguet and his colleagues at the Kivi Kuaka project believe that bristle-thighed curlews could help protect local human populations from extreme weather. They are recording the birds' movements using satellite telemetry, in conjunction with the ICARUS initiative, to develop an early warning system that may one day protect islanders from impending disasters, like tornadoes and tsunamis. Bats leave clues about future viral outbreaks Straw-coloured fruit bats, also known as eidolons, are the most numerous mammal in southern Africa, according to the documentary. Considered the "gardeners of Africa," eidolons are important seed dispersers and pollinators of plants, and some have been observed to travel over 100 kilometres in a single night. Wikelski estimates that the eidolons in Zambia alone are responsible for planting approximately 80 million trees per night. "This is what keeps Africa green," he says in the film. Wikelski and his team are tracking the movements of these mammals from space to better understand their essential role in the ecosystem of Africa, and how they might protect the near-threatened species from hunting and habitat destruction. Tracking their migratory route and the antibodies they carry may also help scientists pinpoint geographic location of emerging diseases. "We can see where [the bats] went, and we can say, 'Well, all of the ebola antibodies are in bats that flew in the western part of Congo,' for example," says Wikelski. Zebras, giraffes and other wildlife help prevent rhino poaching Wikelski's tracking technology is also used in the ongoing war against poaching. According to The Secret Knowledge of Animals, 17,000 African elephants are illegally killed each year for their ivory. Meanwhile, about 1,000 rhinos are hunted for their horns. In South Africa's Kruger National Park, the entire community of large mammals is tracked around the clock to monitor how animals respond to the presence of humans. Rhinos are tagged and tracked so rangers can find them at any time, as well as zebras, giraffes, impalas and wildebeest, since their natural flight response can signal the presence of poachers. "Animals react differently to a lion or a poacher. The lion is local, [and] most of the time, it's not hunting. The poacher is coming in from somewhere, walking through an environment and is trying to find … a rhino," Wikelski says in the film. "We can, fairly easily, distinguish the reaction of animals towards a lion or towards a poacher." As more and more animals grow restless, it signals a human intruder and triggers an alarm for park rangers. Tracking helps protect whales in the Gulf of St. Lawrence In Canada, scientists use tracking information to help protect the North Atlantic right whale in the Gulf of St. Lawrence. It's one of the most endangered large whale species, with fewer than 360 individuals remaining. Ocean warming is forcing them to spend more time in busy shipping and fishing zones, where they are increasingly coming into lethal contact with human activities. "There's three primary threats: ship strikes, entanglement in fishing gear and climate change," says Sarah Fortune, a marine biologist at Dalhousie University in Halifax, in the documentary. Intense monitoring of this species is now required by law in Canada. Whales are tracked using acoustic technology alongside aerial and at-sea surveillance, and a zone of protection moves with the animals. Human activity must adjust to the whales' movements, not the other way around. This is the idea behind dynamic management — and it's only possible by tracking the individual animals. Human activities are having a profound effect on our planet. Understanding the secret knowledge of animals may be critical not only to their survival, but our own as well. Watch the documentary on CBC Gem and the Nature of Things YouTube channel.
The Independent
19-02-2025
- Science
- The Independent
Scientists perplexed to see wild fish recognise specific humans: ‘It was like they were studying us'
Scientists at a Mediterranean research station have found that some wild fish can tell apart humans, recognising and targeting specific divers who had fed them before. The study, published in the journal Biology Letters on Tuesday, found that some wild fish can use visual cues to identify specific humans even when their faces are covered by diving gear. Previous lab studies have shown that captive fish, like archerfish, can recognise human faces in controlled settings. However, there is little evidence that wild fish could do the same, say researchers from Germany 's Max Planck Institute of Animal Behaviour (MPI-AB). To test this, scientists conducted a series of experiments at a research site eight meters underwater in the Mediterranean Sea where wild fish have become habituated to divers. In the first phase of the experiments, study co-author Katinka Soller attempted to attract the attention of local fish by wearing a bright red vest, and fed fish while swimming a length of 50m. Gradually, she removed the vest and wore plain dive gear, kept the food hidden, and fed fish only after they had followed her the full 50m. The fish, according to scientists, were 'willing volunteers' in the study who came and went as they pleased. Two species of seabream fish were particularly willing to engage, they said. After 12 days of training, 20 fish followed Ms Soller, who could recognise several of the fish from their physical traits. 'There was Bernie with two shiny silver scales on the back and Alfie who had a nip out of the tail fin,' she said. In the next experimental phase, researchers tested if these same fish could tell Soller apart from another diver, study senior author Maëlan Tomasek. Dr Tomasek's diving gear 'differed notably' in some colourful parts of the wetsuit and fins, researchers said. This time the divers started at the same point and then swam in different directions, but Dr Tomasek never fed the fish that followed him. Scientists were surprised to find that while the fish followed both divers equally on the first day, the number of fish following Ms Soller increased significantly from day two. Researchers then focused on six fish out of the large group to study individually and found that they showed 'strong positive learning curves.' The findings suggest the fish were conscious of both divers and tested each one to learn that Katinka produced the reward at the end of the swim. However, when scientists repeated the experiment wearing identical diving gear, the fish were unable to discriminate them, they say. Based on this observation, researchers suspect the fish associated differences in the dive gear – most likely the colour cues – with each diver. 'Almost all fish have colour vision, so it is not surprising that the sea bream learned to associate the correct diver based on patches of colour on the body,' Dr Tomasek said. 'We already observed them approaching our faces and scrutinising our bodies. It was like they were studying us, not the other way around,' Ms Soller said.
The Guardian
19-02-2025
- Science
- The Guardian
Wild fish can tell humans apart when they dress differently, study finds
Wild fish can tell people apart – at least when they are wearing different-coloured outfits – researchers have found in a study they say could shift our relationship with the creatures. It is known that certain domestic animals – or those that live close to humans – can tell one person from another, a skill researchers say could be tied to particular humans being more inclined to share resources with them or, conversely, pose a danger. However, such discrimination is less well known in wild animals. Now researchers have found that wild fish can tell two people apart, apparently by what they wear. 'They are just using simple mechanisms that they use every day in their lives, and they adapt it to [recognise] humans,' said Maëlan Tomasek, first author of the research from Max Planck Institute of Animal Behaviour in Germany. Writing in the journal Biology Letters, Tomasek and colleagues report how they carried out the study in open water in the Mediterranean Sea. In the first stage of the study, a researcher spent 12 days training wild saddled seabream and black seabream to follow her by repeatedly offering them food and rewarding those that followed when she swam away. The trainer was then joined by another researcher dressed in either identical diving gear or diving gear with different-coloured patches and fins. In both scenarios, the two divers swam off in different directions, before returning to the starting point and repeating the process. While both researchers carried food, the fish received a reward only if they followed the trainer. The researchers carried out 30 trials for each outfit, and used video recordings to count the number of fish following each diver. They reported that, when the divers wore different outfits, both species of fish followed the trainer more often than the other researcher, with this preference becoming more pronounced as the trials went on. For both species, the team found some individually identifiable fish became better at choosing to follow the trainer, again suggesting the animals were learning which diver to follow. However, when the divers wore the same outfit, no such effect was seen for black bream, while saddled bream followed the trainer more during the middle batch of trials only. 'All in all, when we wore the same outfit, we have no evidence that they could discriminate between us any more,' said Tomasek. Sign up to Down to Earth The planet's most important stories. Get all the week's environment news - the good, the bad and the essential after newsletter promotion The team say that, as the fish had no prior experience with humans, it is likely they were harnessing existing capabilities based on visual cues to tell the divers apart. 'It shows very simple mechanisms, like pattern recognition or colour recognition can be used, and co-opted to be used, in human recognition,' said Tomasek. Tomasek added that the study could prompt us to reconsider the way we treat fish, including whether to kill and eat them. 'It's very human to not want to care about them, but the fact that they can care about us, maybe it's time that we can care about them, too,' he said.
