Wk 3 - Non-Human Animals

Question 1

Convergent evolutionary traits are when…(x1 plus eg)

Answer 1

Adaptations have similar function, but very different origins
Bird or bat wings

Question 2

Divergent evolutionary traits are a result of…(x1)

And occur due to which two types of morphological change (change of form/structure of biological organism)?

Answer 2

Speciation - separate groups, different pressures, natural selection leads to new species
Gradualism model, how most divergent evol occurs – gradual changes into groups over time
Punctuated equilibrium model - change due to some major/catastrophic event

Question 3

Describe the four levels of Whiten and van Schaik (2007) pyramid of building culture

Answer 3

Big base of social information transfer (not biological), which has transient effect, as well as feeding into
Traditions – build up of these changes, that become consistent habits across groups, build into
Culture – diverse and multiple sets of traditions, which leads to
Cumulative culture – more sophisticated tradition built progressively through elaboration on earlier ones

Question 4

Two examples of animals that display appearance (not reality) of social learning

Answer 4

Octopus uses coconut shell to hide from threats

New Caledonian crows (Kenward et al, 2005) make tools to get grubs out of wood; those raised in isolation still do it

Question 5

The Indo-Malayan Octopus can…(x1)
Which is argued by Norman et al (2001) to look like dynamic mimicry because…(x1)
But…(x1)

Answer 5

Mimic being a flat fish, lion fish, sea snake
Can all do it
Likely to do it even if raised in isolated captivity, therefor biologically determined

Question 6

Galef (1992) has argued that the term culture should be reserved for…(x1)

Answer 6

Traditions transmitted by imitation or teaching, assumed to be high-level social learning processes…’

Question 7

Local enhancement is…(x5)

Answer 7

A mechanism of social learning
Animals are attracted to the locations at which other animals are behaving.
Learn something they would not have otherwise learned.
Only learns through happening at right place, right time. Luck. Attracted to other animals behaviour, learn through random exposure

Question 8

Mimicry is…(x2 plus eg)

And we have to…(x1)

Answer 8

A mechanism of social learning
Reproducing the behaviour of another without understanding the intention of the behaviour
eg bird learning a few phrases – unlikely to understand intent of words, or goal
Rule this out when establishing learning in animals

Question 9

Emulation is…(x4)

Answer 9

A mechanism of social learning
Has learnt from another, and knows why other did it, but comes up with own means
Individual observes and learns about changes in inanimate world as result of behaviour of another animal,
Then uses this in devising its own behavioural strategies

Question 10

‘True’ imitation is…(x4)

Answer 10

A mechanism of social learning
I know what you did and why, and I’m deliberately going to do exactly the same
Recognition and reproduction of the goal of the observed behaviour,
As well as the specific actions that brought about that goal

Question 11

Are potato-washing macaques displaying imitation? (x1)

Explain (x4)

Answer 11

No, it’s local enhancement/trial and error over successive generations
Researchers giving sweet potato on beach to monkeys, covered in sand, reducing palatability..
One individual discovered it could rinse them off, behaviour spread to group
Took number of generations to occur – much slower than imitation
Next one to learn was the daughter of original

Question 12

Van de Waal (2013) found evidence of social learning in monkeys, in study involving…

Answer 12

Two tubs of corn, one pink and one blue, one colour palatable, other not
Group chose one colour to ‘prefer’, quickly learned which one to avoid
4 months after Intro of corn, looked at male migration and infants born in the interim
Experimenters made both colours palatable again
Monkeys stuck to one learned about previously
Infants would eat the corn their parents did, despite two good varieties
Migrants switched their preference to align with the group – monkey conformity?
Consistent with the ‘copy when uncertain’ strategy

Question 13

What social learning technique is displayed by nut-cracking chimps? (van de Waal, 2013) (x1)
Explain…(x2)

Answer 13

Emulation - even when physically capable, takes yrs of trial and error
Tools for nut cracking – using the root repeatedly creates an anvil, keep and transport stone for toughest nuts
Only west African chimps do it, takes up to 10 yrs to learn trick – to choose good hammer and anvil, acquire efficiency

Question 14

Whiten, Horner, de Waal (2005) argue that chimps can imitate, based on study involving…(x1)
Based on understanding that…(x1)
Finding…(x1)

Answer 14

Two methods of getting treat out of apparatus – push block aside, or lift it with stick
Emulation would give about 50/50 doing it the way shown
If chimp shown poke method, that’s what they did, and lift = lift – copying actions shown

Question 15

Horner et al (2006) used a cultural transmission chain to find evidence of imitation in chimps, in study involving…(x3)
Finding…(x1)

Answer 15

2 experimental groups plus control, in chains of 5-6 chimps or 8 3-4yo kids
Demonstrated actions are then shown to next individual in group, till everybody shown
Shown to lift flap or slide door to get treat
Both chimps and kids would copy action shown, then transmit that to next in group

Question 16

Horner and Whiten’s (2005) clear/opaque box study reveals…(x1)
In a study involving…(x1)
Finding…(x1)
Concluding that this…(x1)

Answer 16

Where the key diff in imitation is between us and closest relatives
Demonstrated getting treat with opaque box and stick, kids and apes copy all actions
When same box is clear, apes will skip the redundant actions, kids keep doing all the actions
Emphasises the social aspects of imitation in humans

Question 17

Summarise the social learning/imitation found in monkeys, orangutans and chimps (x3)
What does this show us?

Answer 17

Some social learning in monkeys, few traditions, no imitation
Some in orangutans, 19 traditions, some social learning but not imitation
Chimps emulate and imitate (but not habitually, or in the wild – only under strict experimental conditions)
The split between culture and cumulative - t’s the social aspects of imitation that differentiate us

Question 18

Conformity can be important to our understanding of culture because…(x2)

Answer 18

Adjusting behaviour to align with other people’s, irrespective of motivation, is one of the driving forces behind cultural diversification
When peer influence leads to abandonment of idiosyncrasies and convergence on the most prevalent conditions, groups move toward behavioural homogeneity, while increasing between-group heterogeneity - the hallmark of culture

Question 19

Haun, Rakers and Tomasello (2014) compared conformity in kids and great apes in a study involving…(x4)
Finding…(x2)

Answer 19

Kids, chimps, orangutans - tested in task of acquired behavioural strategy:
Trained one to drop ball into coloured box with treat inside -different colour across Ps
Three demonstrators trained to drop balls into same coloured box, but different to that the Ps had learned would give reward
Does Ps copy, or stick to own knowledge?
Children overwhelmingly switched to put balls into demonstrators box – choosing the group
Whereas apes chose one that they’d previously learnt

Question 20

A study providing additional evidence (to potato-washing macaques) that monkeys are not great imitators, or even emulators, involved…(x2)
Finding…(x2)

Answer 20

Experiment with two-ended trap to get food out of apparatus –
Have to push with stick from correct end to stop food falling into trap in centre of tubes
Despite repeated demonstration, couldn’t get it -
Suggests poor at social learning