Bridging Captive and Wild Studies: Behavioral Plasticity and Social Complexity in Theropithecus gelada.

Elisabetta Palagi,Thore J Bergman

doi:10.3390/ani11103003

Elisabetta Palagi, Thore J Bergman

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3390/ani11103003

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Abstract

Simple SummaryAnimals are able to flexibly adjust their behavior according to both physical and social environmental changes. In this view, multiple data collections carried out in different settings are crucial to understand proximate and ultimate causes of such a behavioral plasticity. By selecting Theropithecus gelada as a model, we suggest that the complementary strengths and weaknesses of research in captive and wild settings makes such a hybrid approach particularly relevant. By providing information at different scales, the two settings can give a fuller picture of a behavioral trait. The apparent incongruity in behavior across captive and wild data is itself a powerful tool to explore behavioral plasticity and latent propensities. Finally, the two settings allow validating and exploring behavioral aspects that are noticed in the other settings. We really hope that our experiences and ideas can be helpful in stimulating other researchers to consider the captive-wild approach as a valid opportunity to reach a fuller picture of the behavior they are studying.Cognitive ethology explores the ability of animals to flexibly adapt their behavior to rapid physical and social environment fluctuations. Although there is a historical dichotomy between field and captive studies, recently, a growing interest in questions that sit at the intersection of cognitive and adaptive perspectives has helped bridge this divide. By focusing on Theropithecus gelada, we discuss the three main reasons why this hybrid approach is extremely successful. First, captive and wild studies provide data at different social, spatial, and temporal scales that can be synthesized to give a fuller picture of the behavior. Secondly, apparently conflicting results from captive and wild settings are powerful tools to explore behavioral flexibility and latent behavioral tendencies. Third, the different settings provide ways of validating and exploring behaviors that are noticed in the other setting. Although we were able to bring together our captive and wild research to demonstrate these ideas, we could have obtained a more integrated vision on the proximate and ultimate gelada behavioral and cognitive strategies if we had considered this hybrid approach from the beginning. We hope that this manuscript stimulates scholars in designing their studies by taking into account the incredible potential of a complementary captive-wild research approach.

Highlights

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Cognitive ethology explores the ability of animals to respond flexibly and appropriately to the rapid fluctuations of the physical and social environment through the acquisition, transfer and use of information [1,2]
The large number of studies carried out both on wild and captive populations of geladas (Theropithecus gelada) make the species a suitable model to evaluate the complementary role of these two environmental settings in the study of animal behavior

Summary

The Complementary Nature of Captive and Wild Studies of Cognitive Ethology

Cognition is a critical driver of how many animals respond adaptively to a changing environment. Cognitive ethology explores the ability of animals to respond flexibly and appropriately to the rapid fluctuations of the physical and social environment through the acquisition, transfer and use of information [1,2] This perspective has been successful, a major difficulty in bringing an adaptive perspective to cognition (and a cognitive perspective to wild behavior) derives from different research needs. Captive work has benefited from focusing on behaviors that maintain ecological validity (e.g., the ability to recognize faces is unlikely to be present in one setting but absent in the other) while field work has benefited from incorporating greater experimental control (e.g., playback experiments) These hybrid approaches have proven enormously successful. Using both approaches enables a more complete study program To highlight this theme, we use studies of communication in geladas and anticipate some possible aspects of research that can be addressed by integrating future data from wild and captive settings

The Model Species

Theme 1—Complementary Scales of Research

Theme 2—The Value of Variation across Field and Captive Settings

Theme 3—Field and Captivity as Reciprocal Providing Grounds

Findings

Conclusions