K.J. Robinson
Conspecific recognition and aggression reduction to familiars in newly weaned, socially plastic mammals
Robinson, K.J.; Twiss, S.D.; Hazon, N.; Moss, S.; Lonergan, M.; Pomeroy, P.P.
Authors
Abstract
Recognising conspecifics and behaving appropriately towards them is a crucial ability for many species. Grey seals (Halichoerus grypus) show varying capabilities in this regard: mother-pup recognition has been demonstrated in some geographical populations but is absent in others, yet there is evidence that individuals aggregate with prior associates. The recognition capabilities of newly weaned grey seal pups were investigated using class recognition trials within the habituation/dishabituation paradigm. Trials took place in pens, using pairs of individuals that either had previously cohabited (familiar) or that had never met before (stranger). Frequencies of olfactory and visual investigative behaviours (‘checks’) and aggressive interactions were recorded during trials. Familiar individuals recognised each other: paired strangers showed significantly more checks and aggressive interactions than were seen in trials pairing familiars. Oxytocin concentrations in post-trial plasma samples were analysed to investigate the underlying physiology modulating recognition abilities; however, no significant differences were detected between familiar or stranger trials. This study demonstrates that at a young age, grey seals can recognise individuals they have previously encountered. Recognition abilities in this species have adaptive value by allowing the reduction of costly aggressive interactions between familiar conspecifics, which is often cited as the first step towards the evolution of sociality in a species. This study is the first with wild subjects to find conspecific recognition abilities in a pinniped species outside of reproductive contexts. It demonstrates that even largely solitary species can be capable of recognition and pro-social behaviours that benefit them during times when they must aggregate.
Citation
Robinson, K., Twiss, S., Hazon, N., Moss, S., Lonergan, M., & Pomeroy, P. (2015). Conspecific recognition and aggression reduction to familiars in newly weaned, socially plastic mammals. Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology, 69(8), 1383-1394. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00265-015-1952-7
Journal Article Type | Article |
---|---|
Acceptance Date | May 31, 2015 |
Online Publication Date | Jun 20, 2015 |
Publication Date | Aug 1, 2015 |
Deposit Date | Aug 6, 2015 |
Publicly Available Date | Aug 11, 2015 |
Journal | Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology |
Print ISSN | 0340-5443 |
Electronic ISSN | 1432-0762 |
Publisher | Springer |
Peer Reviewed | Peer Reviewed |
Volume | 69 |
Issue | 8 |
Pages | 1383-1394 |
DOI | https://doi.org/10.1007/s00265-015-1952-7 |
Keywords | Aggression, Grey seal, Mammal, Oxytocin, Pinniped, Recognition. |
Related Public URLs | http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00265-015-1952-7?wt_mc=alerts.TOCjournals |
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© The Author(s) 2015 This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license, and indicate if changes were made.
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