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Hare et al 2005

Social Cognitive Evolution in Captive Foxes Is a Correlated By-Product of Experimental Domestication. Hare et al 2005. Background. Dogs have an uncanny ability to read human communicative gestures (e.g. pointing) Thought to have evolved during domestication

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Hare et al 2005

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  1. Social Cognitive Evolution in Captive Foxes Is a Correlated By-Product of Experimental Domestication Hare et al 2005

  2. Background • Dogs have an uncanny ability to read human communicative gestures (e.g. pointing) • Thought to have evolved during domestication • Either due to direct selection of this ability • Or a by-product of selection against fear/aggression

  3. Question • Does direct selection or a by-product of selection account for this behavior? • How do fox kits from an experimental population selectively bred over 45 years for lack of fear/aggression for humans compare to a control group of fox kits not bred for tame behavior and to dog puppies in response to human gestures?

  4. Experiment 1 Do Experimental Foxes Use Human Communicative Cues to Find Food?

  5. Experiment 1 – Setup • Subjects (2-4 months old): • 11 experimentally domesticated foxes • 11 dog puppies • Procedure: • Subjects introduced to and tested in novel room • E places food in one of two cups on floor • Once food is hidden, E points and gazes (while lying on floor) towards food cup • Subject chooses cup and gets food (food cup selected) or is shown food (if selected empty cup)

  6. Experiment 1 – Results • Point and Gaze Cue: • Experimental foxes and puppies equally good at finding hidden food • No Visual Cue: • Control foxes unable to find hidden food • Dogs (even adults) unable to find hidden food • No “learning” during trials (1st half vs. 2nd half)

  7. Experiment 2 Do Experimental or Control Foxes Use Human Gestures More?

  8. Experiment 2 – Setup • Subjects (3-4 months old): • 17 experimental foxes • 17 control foxes • Procedure: • Introduce novel E and novel object to fox in home room • E gazes at, points toward, and touches 1 of 2 metal toys • Toys (on board) slid towards fox • Subject touches/plays with one toy

  9. Experiment 2 – Results • Introduction trial • Experimental + Control foxes approach E and novel object • Experimental foxes quicker to approach both • Human Cue (Novel Object) • Experimental foxes choose same toy as E touched • Control foxes choose randomly

  10. Experiment 3 Are Experimental Foxes More Skilled than Controls in All Human-Led Tasks?

  11. Experiment 3--Setup • Do foxes have a preference for toy manipulated by an object? • Tested whether experimental foxes simply performed better in human-led tasks. • Almost identical to Experiment 2. • 9 control, 9 experimental foxes • Experimenter touched a toy with feather • Movement obscured from view of foxes • Selected based on highest performance in Experiment 2.

  12. Experiment 3--Results • No significant difference between experimental and control foxes. • Experimental foxes had no preference for toy manipulated by object. • Control foxes preferred toy manipulated by object.

  13. Experiment 4 Are Experimental Foxes More Skillful with Human Communicative Cues than Controls?

  14. Experiment 4—Setup • Fox groups directly compared to test ability to find hidden food using Point-and-Gaze cue from Experiment 1. • 6 experimental, 6 control foxes. • Control foxes interacted with experimenter twice as long as experimental foxes before testing. • Set up like Experiment 1 • food hidden in one of two bowls • experimenter indicates location with point-and-gaze cue.

  15. Experiment 4--Results • Both groups used point-and-gaze cue to find hidden food at above chance levels. • Experimental foxes used cue significantly more often than control foxes. • Neither group increased in ability to find foods over the course of more trials.

  16. Summary • Experimental foxes are as skilled as domesticated dogs in using human communicative gestures. • Experimental foxes approach strange humans and novel objects more quickly. • Experimental foxes are more spontaneously interested in playing with a toy a human has recently gestured toward and touched. • Experimental foxes are more skilled at using human communicative gestures than control foxes even when control foxes have been trained to do so.

  17. Discussion • The current study does NOT support the direct selection hypothesis. • It DOES support the by-product of selection hypothesis. • Meaning that through domestication and selection for tame behavior, dogs (and apparently foxes) also become adept at reading human communicative gestures.

  18. Conclusion • This study suggests that domestication may alter animals’ social cognitive skills. • That selecting for tameness may be enough to produce the ability to understand human communicative gestures.

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