Four sympatrically nesting auks show clear resource segregation in their foraging environment

2017 ◽  
Vol 572 ◽  
pp. 243-254 ◽  
Author(s):  
I Pratte ◽  
GJ Robertson ◽  
ML Mallory
Keyword(s):  
Foraging Environment

scholarly journals Decadal changes in blood δ 13 C values, at-sea distribution, and weaning mass of southern elephant seals from Kerguelen Islands

2020 ◽  
Vol 287 (1933) ◽  
pp. 20201544 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julie Mestre ◽  
Matthieu Authier ◽  
Yves Cherel ◽  
Rob Harcourt ◽  
Clive R. McMahon ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Foraging Strategy ◽  
Significant Shift ◽  
Ecological Change ◽  
Foraging Habitat ◽  
Elephant Seals ◽  
Kerguelen Islands ◽  
Phytoplankton Communities ◽  
Foraging Performance ◽  
Southern Elephant Seals ◽  
Foraging Environment

Changes in the foraging environment and at-sea distribution of southern elephant seals from Kerguelen Islands were investigated over a decade (2004–2018) using tracking, weaning mass, and blood δ 13 C values. Females showed either a sub-Antarctic or an Antarctic foraging strategy, and no significant shift in their at-sea distribution was detected between 2004 and 2017. The proportion of females foraging in sub-Antarctic versus Antarctic habitats did not change over the 2006–2018 period. Pup weaning mass varied according to the foraging habitat of their mothers. The weaning mass of sub-Antarctic foraging mothers' pups decreased by 11.7 kg over the study period, but they were on average 5.8 kg heavier than pups from Antarctic foraging mothers. Pup blood δ 13 C values decreased by 1.1‰ over the study period regardless of their sex and the presumed foraging habitat of their mothers. Together, these results suggest an ecological change is occurring within the Indian sector of the Southern Ocean with possible consequences on the foraging performance of southern elephant seals. We hypothesize that this shift in δ 13 C is related to a change in primary production and/or in the composition of phytoplankton communities, but this requires further multidisciplinary investigations.

Reconstructing the foraging environment of the latest titanosaurs (Fumanya dinosaur tracksite, Catalonia)

2014 ◽  
Vol 410 ◽  
pp. 380-389 ◽  
Author(s):  
Josep Marmi ◽  
Bernat Vila ◽  
Carles Martín-Closas ◽  
Sheila Villalba-Breva
Keyword(s):  
Foraging Environment

scholarly journals Evolution of protolinguistic abilities as a by-product of learning to forage in structured environments

2015 ◽  
Vol 282 (1811) ◽  
pp. 20150353 ◽  
Author(s):  
Oren Kolodny ◽  
Shimon Edelman ◽  
Arnon Lotem
Keyword(s):  
Language Acquisition ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Cognitive Abilities ◽  
Sequential Learning ◽  
Cognitive Mechanisms ◽  
Learning Mechanisms ◽  
Evolutionary Trajectory ◽  
Agent Based ◽  
Evolutionary Origins ◽  
Foraging Environment

The skills required for the learning and use of language are the focus of extensive research, and their evolutionary origins are widely debated. Using agent-based simulations in a range of virtual environments, we demonstrate that challenges of foraging for food can select for cognitive mechanisms supporting complex, hierarchical, sequential learning, the need for which arises in language acquisition. Building on previous work, where we explored the conditions under which reinforcement learning is out-competed by seldom-reinforced continuous learning that constructs a network model of the environment, we now show that realistic features of the foraging environment can select for two critical advances: (i) chunking of meaningful sequences found in the data, leading to representations composed of units that better fit the prevalent statistical patterns in the environment; and (ii) generalization across units based on their contextual similarity. Importantly, these learning processes, which in our framework evolved for making better foraging decisions, had been earlier shown to reproduce a range of findings in language learning in humans. Thus, our results suggest a possible evolutionary trajectory that may have led from basic learning mechanisms to complex hierarchical sequential learning that can support advanced cognitive abilities of the kind needed for language acquisition.

scholarly journals Foraging environment determines the genetic architecture and evolutionary potential of trophic morphology in cichlid fishes

2016 ◽  
Vol 25 (24) ◽  
pp. 6012-6023 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kevin J. Parsons ◽  
Moira Concannon ◽  
Dina Navon ◽  
Jason Wang ◽  
Ilene Ea ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Genetic Architecture ◽  
Evolutionary Potential ◽  
Cichlid Fishes ◽  
Trophic Morphology ◽  
Foraging Environment

scholarly journals In polytocous mammals, weakling neonates, but not their stronger littermates, benefit from specialized foraging

2019 ◽  
Vol 65 (6) ◽  
pp. 675-683 ◽  
Author(s):  
Janko Skok ◽  
Maja Prevolnik Povše
Keyword(s):  
Game Theory ◽  
Growth Rate ◽  
Random Sampling ◽  
Foraging Strategy ◽  
Foraging Strategies ◽  
Lactation Period ◽  
Common Phenomenon ◽  
Theoretical Predictions ◽  
Foraging Environment ◽  
Foraging Specialization

Abstract Adjusting foraging strategies is a common phenomenon within groups of animals competing for the same resource. In polytocous mammals, neonates concurrently compete for limited milk and alternate between two foraging (suckling) strategies: adaptable exploratory foraging with random sampling of teats, and ordered foraging with a tendency towards exploiting a particular suckling position. Some theoretical (game theory) models have shown that weaker siblings in particular benefit from foraging specialization (suckling order). Neonate piglets establish a well-defined suckling order that develops gradually and fluctuates throughout the lactation period, implying the existence of inter-individual differences in foraging strategies. We therefore analyzed suckling behavior in pigs to determine whether one foraging strategy was more beneficial to neonates in terms of their body weight and foraging environment. We found that intermediate and heavy littermates tended to adjust their suckling strategy according to the foraging environment; however, the selected foraging strategy did not affect their overall growth performance. Lighter individuals that consumed significantly less milk did not greatly alternate their foraging strategy according to the foraging environment, but their growth rate was significantly higher whenever they performed less-exploratory foraging behavior. Although suckling order appeared to be a relatively stable behavioral phenotype, it was beneficial exclusively for weaklings. These results confirm theoretical predictions and indicate that specializing in a suckling position is a beneficial strategy for weaker, light neonates. These findings suggest that physically weaker neonates might have driven the evolution of neonatal foraging specialization.

Effects of predictability and competition on group and individual choice in a free-ranging foraging environment

2014 ◽  
Vol 101 (2) ◽  
pp. 288-302
Author(s):  
Lavinia Tan ◽  
Frank Sosa ◽  
Eric Talbot ◽  
Donald Berg ◽  
Dawniris Eversz ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Individual Choice ◽  
Foraging Environment ◽  
Free Ranging

Managed bumble bees acquire parasites from their foraging environment: A case study on parasite spillback

2021 ◽  
Vol 182 ◽  
pp. 107583
Author(s):  
Kleber de S. Pereira ◽  
Laurian Parmentier ◽  
Niels Piot ◽  
Joachim R. de Miranda ◽  
Guy Smagghe ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Bumble Bees ◽  
Parasite Spillback ◽  
Foraging Environment
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