Eye blinking in an avian species is associated with gaze shifts

Even when animals are actively monitoring their environment, they lose access to visual information whenever they blink. They can strategically time their blinks to minimize information loss and improve visual functioning but we have little understanding of how this process operates in birds. This study therefore examined blinking in freely-moving peacocks (Pavo cristatus) to determine the relationship between their blinks, gaze shifts, and context. Peacocks wearing a telemetric eye-tracker were exposed to a taxidermy predator (Vulpes vulpes) and their blinks and gaze shifts were recorded. Peacocks blinked during the majority of their gaze shifts, especially when gaze shifts were large, thereby timing their blinks to coincide with periods when visual information is already suppressed. They inhibited their blinks the most when they exhibited high rates of gaze shifts and were thus highly alert. Alternative hypotheses explaining the link between blinks and gaze shifts are discussed

Same-Sex Gaze Attraction Influences Mate-Choice Copying in Humans

Mate-choice copying occurs when animals rely on the mating choices of others to inform their own mating decisions. The proximate mechanisms underlying mate-choice copying remain unknown. To address this question, we tracked the gaze of men and women as they viewed a series of photographs in which a potential mate was pictured beside an opposite-sex partner; the participants then indicated their willingness to engage in a long-term relationship with each potential mate. We found that both men and women expressed more interest in engaging in a relationship with a potential mate if that mate was paired with an attractive partner. Men and women's attention to partners varied with partner attractiveness and this gaze attraction influenced their subsequent mate choices. These results highlight the prevalence of non-independent mate choice in humans and implicate social attention and reward circuitry in these decisions

Noise pollution has limited effects on nocturnal vigilance in peahens

Natural environments are increasingly exposed to high levels of noise pollution. Noise pollution can alter the behavior of animals but we know little about its effects on antipredator behavior. We therefore investigated the impact of noise pollution on vigilance behavior and roost selection in an avian species, peafowl (Pavo cristatus), that inhabits urban environments. Captive peahens were exposed to noise pollution at night and their vigilance levels and roost selections were monitored. The vigilance levels of peahens were unaffected by exposure to noise pollution within trials. Furthermore, the peahens exhibited no preference for roosting farther or closer to noise pollution. Interestingly, predators often avoided the experimental area during nights with noise pollution, which could explain why vigilance rates were higher overall during control compared to noise trials. The results suggest that peahens’ perception of risk is not drastically impacted by noise pollution but longer-term studies will be necessary to assess any chronic effects

I like who you like, but only if I like you: Female character affects mate-choice copying.

Mate-choice copying is shown when women imitate the mate-choice preferences of other women. We propose that the preferences of women with a pleasant character should be more influential than those of women with an unpleasant character and further suggest that this should apply only when the female demonstrates active interest in the male, rather than disinterest. Here, we presented women as having either a pleasant or unpleasant character and found that observing pleasant women looking at men increased women’s preferences for those men, while observing unpleasant women looking at men had no effect on women’s preferences. Furthermore, the effect of being looked at by a pleasant woman was heightened when she was smiling. This suggests that judgements of facial attractiveness can be socially influenced and that character affects the degree of influence

Captive-born collared peccary (Pecari tajacu, Tayassuidae) fails to discriminate between predator and non-predator models

Captive animals may lose the ability to recognize their natural predators, making conservation programs more susceptible to failure if such animals are released into the wild. Collared peccaries are American tayassuids that are vulnerable to local extinction in certain areas, and conservation programs are being conducted. Captive-born peccaries are intended for release into the wild in Minas Gerais state, southeastern Brazil. In this study, we tested the ability of two groups of captive-born collared peccaries to recognize their predators and if they were habituated to humans. Recognition tests were performed using models of predators (canids and felids) and non-predators animals, as well as control objects, such as a plastic chair; a human was also presented to the peccaries, and tested as a separate stimulus. Anti-predator defensive responses such as fleeing and threatening displayswere not observed in response to predator models. Predator detection behaviors both from visual and olfactory cues were displayed, although they were not specifically targeted at predator models. These results indicate that collared peccaries were unable to recognize model predators. Habituation effects, particularly on anti-predator behaviors, were observed both with a 1-h model presentation and across testing days. Behavioral responses to humans did not differ from those to other models. Thus, if these animals were to be released into the wild, they should undergo anti-predator training sessions to enhance their chances of survival

Vocal Interactivity in-and-between Humans, Animals, and Robots

Almost all animals exploit vocal signals for a range of ecologically motivated purposes: detecting predators/prey and marking territory, expressing emotions, establishing social relations, and sharing information. Whether it is a bird raising an alarm, a whale calling to potential partners, a dog responding to human commands, a parent reading a story with a child, or a business-person accessing stock prices using Siri, vocalization provides a valuable communication channel through which behavior may be coordinated and controlled, and information may be distributed and acquired. Indeed, the ubiquity of vocal interaction has led to research across an extremely diverse array of fields, from assessing animal welfare, to understanding the precursors of human language, to developing voice-based human–machine interaction. Opportunities for cross-fertilization between these fields abound; for example, using artificial cognitive agents to investigate contemporary theories of language grounding, using machine learning to analyze different habitats or adding vocal expressivity to the next generation of language-enabled autonomous social agents. However, much of the research is conducted within well-defined disciplinary boundaries, and many fundamental issues remain. This paper attempts to redress the balance by presenting a comparative review of vocal interaction within-and-between humans, animals, and artificial agents (such as robots), and it identifies a rich set of open research questions that may benefit from an interdisciplinary analysis

Adverse effects of artificial illumination on bat drinking activity

Artificial illumination at night (ALAN) alters many aspects of animal behaviour. Commuting and foraging bats have been found to be affected by ALAN, but no study has yet addressed the impact of lighting on drinking activity, despite its critical importance for bats. We experimentally illuminated cattle troughs used by drinking bats at four forest sites in Italy, and compared drinking activity and foraging activity under lit and dark conditions. We predicted that (1) the number of bat species and drinking events will be lower under illumination and (2) forest bat species will be more affected than edge specialists. We recorded 2549 drinking events from 12 species or species groups, most of which decreased drinking activity under illumination. The effects of ALAN on drinking were stronger than on foraging. Forest species never drank when the light was on. Edge-foraging species reduced drinking activity while also increasing foraging under lit conditions. We highlight a previously overlooked negative effect of ALAN on bats, whose implications may be locally catastrophic. Given the importance of water sites for both bat foraging and drinking, their illumination should be forbidden, appropriately mitigated or, if necessary, compensated for with the creation of alternative drinking sites