Datasets

Abstract Social learning enables adaptive information acquisition provided that it is not random but selective. To understand species typical decision-making and to trace the evolutionary origins of social learning, the heuristics social learners use need to be identified. Here, we experimentally tested the nature of majority influence in the zebra finch. Subjects simultaneously observed two demonstrator groups differing in relative and absolute numbers (ratios 1:2 / 2:4 / 3:3 / 1:5) foraging from two novel food sources (black and white feeders). We find that demonstrator groups influenced ...

Data and code necessary to replicate analyses for Goldsborough et al. "Chimpanzees communicate to coordinate a cultural practice"

Burkart et al. conducted phylogenetic regression analyses to investigate the evolutionary drivers of proactive prosociality. They tested 24 groups of 15 primate species, including humans, in a group-service paradigm, which provided the option to any member in the group to deliver a valuable food resource to group members – the provider could not benefit themselves. Within the sample, 4 species were assayed with several groups (range groups: 2-5) and 11 species were assayed with only 1 group. In their primary regression analyses, the authors averaged prosociality scores across groups (within ...

Culture is a hallmark of the human species, both in terms of the transmission of material inventions (e.g., tool manufacturing) and the adherence to social conventions (e.g., greeting mannerisms). While material culture has been reported across the animal kingdom, indications of social culture in animals are limited. Moreover, there is a paucity in evidencing cultural stability in animals. Here, based on a large dataset spanning 12 years, I show that chimpanzees adhere to arbitrary group-specific handclasp preferences that cannot be explained by genetics or the ecological environment. Despite ...

Chimpanzees act cooperatively in the wild, but whether they afford benefits to others, and whether their tendency to act prosocially varies across communities is unclear. Here, we show that chimpanzees from neighboring communities provide valuable resources to group members at personal cost, and that the magnitude of their prosocial behavior is group specific. Provided with a resource-donation experiment allowing for free (partner) choice, we observed an increase in prosocial acts across the study period in the majority of chimpanzees. When group members could profit (test condition), ...

No abstract available