Abstract
Social information allows the rapid dissemination of novel information among individuals. However, an individual's ability to use information is likely to be dependent on phenotypic constraints operating at three successive steps: acquisition, application, and exploitation. We tested this novel framework by quantifying the sequential process of social information use with experimental food patches in wild baboons (Papio ursinus). We identified phenotypic constraints at each step of the information use sequence: peripheral individuals in the proximity network were less likely to acquire and apply social information, while subordinate females were less likely to exploit it successfully. Social bonds and personality also played a limiting role along the sequence. As a result of these constraints, the average individual only acquired and exploited social information on.
Highlights
IntroductionInformation can be acquired in two ways (Dall et al, 2005): by interacting with the environment directly (personal information) or by attending to the behaviour of others (social information)
Individuals require information to reduce uncertainty about their environment
We found widespread evidence for the social transmission of information about the location of food patches (Table 4)
Summary
Information can be acquired in two ways (Dall et al, 2005): by interacting with the environment directly (personal information) or by attending to the behaviour of others (social information) Individuals benefit from both personal and social information in myriad contexts, including foraging, predator avoidance, and mate choice (Giraldeau et al, 2002). Their use is moderated by their expense and reliability: personal information is usually reliable but costly and time consuming to collect, social information is less costly but more likely to become outdated and unreliable (Giraldeau et al, 2002; Laland, 2004). Carter et al (2014) found that the time spent acquiring social information about a task did not correlate with subsequent performance (information application) in wild baboons (Papio ursinus), while Atton et al (2012) found differences in individual performance between task discovery (information acquisition) and task solving
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