Linking cognition with fitness in a wild primate: fitness correlates of problem-solving performance and spatial learning ability
Linking cognition with fitness in a wild primate: fitness correlates of problem-solving performance and spatial learning ability
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DOI：
10.1098/rstb.2017.0295
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发表时间：
2018-09-26
影响因子：
6.3
通讯作者：
Kappeler, Peter M.
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
Huebner, Franziska;Fichtel, Claudia;Kappeler, Peter M.
将野生动物的认知表现与适应性结果联系起来，对于理解形成个体认知差异的进化过程至关重要。然而，调查这些联系的少数研究显示，不同的认知表现测量和健康代理之间存在不同的关系。为了为本研究提供额外的比较数据，我们将野生灰狐猴（Microcebus murinus）在迷宫中反复解决问题和空间学习能力的个体表现与身体状况和生存联系起来。所有四个变量都表现出显著的个体间差异。解决问题的效率，而不是空间学习的表现，预测了严酷的干旱季节后身体状况的变化程度，这表明快速应用新发现的运动技术的能力也可能有助于开发新的天然食物资源。然而，生存与这两项任务的表现没有联系，这表明鼠狐猴的生存可能并不取决于这里所讨论的认知表现。我们的研究首次将野生灵长类物种的认知与适应性代理联系起来，我们的讨论强调了在选择有意义的认知和适应性变量时考虑物种生活史和生态的重要性和挑战。这篇文章是“认知能力个体差异的原因和后果”主题的一部分。
Linking the cognitive performance of wild animals with fitness consequences is crucial for understanding evolutionary processes that shape individual variation in cognition. However, the few studies that have examined these links revealed differing relationships between various cognitive performance measures and fitness proxies. To contribute additional comparative data to this body of research, we linked individual performance during repeated problem-solving and spatial learning ability in a maze with body condition and survival in wild grey mouse lemurs (Microcebus murinus). All four variables exhibited substantial inter-individual variation. Solving efficiency in the problem-solving task, but not spatial learning performance, predicted the magnitude of change in body condition after the harsh dry season, indicating that the ability to quickly apply a newly discovered motor technique might also facilitate exploitation of new, natural food resources. Survival was not linked with performance in both tasks, however, suggesting that mouse lemurs' survival might not depend on the cognitive performances addressed here. Our study is the first linking cognition with fitness proxies in a wild primate species, and our discussion highlights the importance and challenges of accounting for a species' life history and ecology in choosing meaningful cognitive and fitness variables for a study in the wild.This article is part of the theme issue 'Causes and consequences of individual differences in cognitive abilities'.