Comparitive Cognition

Question 1

What is comparitive cognition?

Answer 1

Study of information processing across species

Often targets:
• Memory
• Categorisation
• Decision-making
• Problem-solving
• Language
• Deception

Question 2

What are Tinbergen’s four questions?

Answer 2

Ultimate Cause
1. What purpose does this trait serve for survival or
reproduction?

2. How is this trait distributed among various species?
   • Proximate Cause
3. What biological and environmental events lead to the
   expression of this trait in an individual?
4. How does this trait emerge or change during an
   individual’s development

Question 3

What is the location bias?

Answer 3

Different environmental demands lead to different
abilities in similar species

Different species with similar environmental demands can
have similar abilities

Question 4

Location bias study performed by Bald & Kamil:

Answer 4

Comparison of Clark’s nutcrackers, pinyon jays, scrub
jays and Mexican jays (Balda & Kamil, 2006)

• Clark’s nutcracker outperformed on retrieval accuracy
• Storing bird in harsh environment

Question 5

How did Clever Han’s know the answer to the maths questions?

Answer 5

Oskar Pfungst investigated further:

Incorrect if:
1. Could not see the person asking the question
2. Person asking the question didn’t know the answer
• Learned to tap until the questioner’s features
changed…not arithmetic but stimulus discrimination
with a treat involved
• Implications for research

Question 6

Can animals problem-solve?

Answer 6

• Tool use demonstrates higher order cognitive skills
• Young chimpanzees watch others to learn to crack nuts with stone tools
• Multi-purpose items
• Sea otters, birds, primates use rocks to open shells
• Chimpanzees use vegetation as pillows and leaves to protect from rain
• Carrying tool in expectation for future use displays higher intelligence, e.g.
bonobos
• Multiple tool use rare, e.g. chimpanzees
• Evidence supports ability of animals to understand cause and effect

• Octopus and coconut shell

Question 7

Can animals be self-aware?

Answer 7

Mark and Mirror Task
• Gordon Gallup (1970) and Beulah Amsterdam (1972)
examined young primates
• Subject marked on face with paint/makeup (unaware)
• Provided with a mirror

Both chimpanzees and human infants display self-recognition
before age three years
• Humans ~ 24 months
• Chimpanzees ~ 28 months
• Other species:
• Dolphins
• Elephants
• Great apes
• Pigeons (required additional training)
• Variability within species