Biology subjects

Range, F.

Publications and source records attributed to Range, F..

10 recordsLinked to original sources

bioRxiv2026

Figuring things out: Innovation arena in wolves and dogs

Dogs and wolves present an interesting lens through which to examine innovative behaviors, as both of their environments promote the development of innovations for different reasons. Dogs' natural environment (as free-ranging animals) is characterized by high diversity and abundance in novel feeding opportunities. Conversely, wolves live in an unpredictable and harsh environment in which adapting to sudden scarcity is vital for survival. Thus, to analyze the role of the environment in innovative behavior (both evolutionarily and ontogenetically) we studied problem-solving skills of three populations: captive wolves, "pack dogs" (raised similarly to the wolves), and pet dogs. For this, we used an "innovation arena" (after Rossler & Mioduszewska et al., 2020) consisting of 9 novel puzzle boxes presented simultaneously. Pet dogs were better at solving the boxes than their pack-living counterparts, which could point towards prior positive experiences with similar opportunities (here, human-created constructs) providing motivation to interact with novel features of the environment, which would eventually lead to innovation. We found little effect of evolution: wolves needed more time to approach the boxes (potentially due to neophobia), but both wolves and pack dogs interacted with and solved the boxes to a similar extent.

animal behavior and cognition↗

bioRxiv2026

Birth synchronisation increases allonursing opportunities in free-ranging dogs

Over 50 years ago, the hypothesis emerged that co-resident women synchronise menstruation through pheromonal cues. This idea has persisted as a widespread narrative and has subsequently been extrapolated to other animals as well. Indeed, reproductive synchrony has many potential benefits, including creating allonursing opportunities and facilitating female mate choice. Nevertheless, little evidence exists of female vertebrates synchronising their oestrus beyond seasonal effects, through socially mediated cues. We analysed reproductive synchrony in free-ranging dogs, which combine weak, population-dependent reproductive seasonality with facultative cooperative breeding. Controlling for seasonality, we show that birth synchrony was higher among co-resident, maternally related females, suggesting synchronisation among individuals who are likely to cooperate. This was supported by our finding that birth synchrony and maternal kinship independently increased the probability and frequency of allonursing. Finally, preliminary evidence shows that oestrus synchrony decreased male monopolisation. These findings contribute to the debate on socially mediated reproductive synchronisation, suggesting that it may have mainly evolved because it facilitates cooperative breeding.

animal behavior and cognition↗

bioRxiv2026

Beyond compliance: evaluating the impact of assent-based training on equine behavior and the human-horse relationship.

Recent advances in animal training increasingly emphasize welfare, positive experience and the reduction of stress. In the equine sector, however, such progress is complicated by the horse s dual role as both companion and performance animal. This study investigated whether an assent based training approach (ABT) has an effect on horse behavior and human-horse interaction quality compared to traditional equine training (TET) based on pressure and release. Two groups of horse-owner pairs (ABT and TET) participated in two behavioral tests. A stroking session evaluated horses' responses to human tactile interaction, while an obstacle path assessed horses' exploration of novel objects and refusal behaviors. Behavioral measures of exploration, avoidance, and owner-directed behaviors were analyzed alongside horse personality traits. A newly validated questionnaire was used to gather demography information, training habits and horse personality traits. During the stroking session, ABT horses displayed more positive human-directed behaviors, reflecting active engagement rather than passive tolerance. Sociability was associated with the overall frequency of human-directed behaviors, but did not predict their positive valence, which was instead linked to ABT training style. Horses trained mainly with ABT explored obstacles more and showed fewer refusal behaviors than traditionally trained horses, independently of anxiety traits derived from personality scores. These findings suggest that assent-based training practices are associated with increased confidence and cooperative engagement in horses, supporting the potential of agency oriented approaches to enhance both equine welfare and human-horse interaction quality.

animal behavior and cognition↗

bioRxiv2026

Chorus Synchrony as a Cue: Influence of Chorus Howl Synchrony from Unfamiliar Packs on Wolves' Behaviour

Chorus howls play a central role in wolves' (Canis lupus) social communication, shaping both intra- and inter-pack interactions. While synchrony has been shown to influence perceived threat from outgroups in birds and humans, whether the synchrony of an outside pack's chorus howl plays a role in wolf pack behaviour remains unclear. This study investigated behavioural responses of 19 zoo-housed wolf packs to playbacks of synchronous and asynchronous chorus howls from unfamiliar packs, in comparison to a dove control call. We hypothesized that packs would show stronger intra-pack cohesion and greater spatial withdrawal in response to more synchronous, and thus cohesive - and potentially more formidable - sounding vocalisations. Alternatively, asynchronous howls might elicit stronger responses due to their ambiguity and the "Beau Geste" effect (where asynchronous signals make it harder to infer the number of callers). Synchronous howls resulted in more distance from the sound source and less activity compared with asynchronous howls. This could be interpreted as a more cautious response towards a perceived threat. However, since there was no effect on pack-directed behaviour and no difference between the synchronous and control sound, lower interest or motivation to engage with the stimulus cannot be excluded. In contrast, wolves spent more time near the sound-source after hearing asynchronous howls, approached it more, and oriented towards it for longer compared to synchronous playbacks, a pattern consistent with threat-investigation. In how far these reactions result from a more difficult localisation of synchronous howls or more ambiguity in pack size in the asynchronous playbacks, as well as how this translates to wild wolf behaviour, remains to be investigated.

animal behavior and cognition↗

bioRxiv2026

From wag to affect: Tail kinematic signatures of canine emotional states in computer-controlled environments

From facial expressions to gestures, animals use multiple signal modalities to express emotions and communicate. In dogs, tail movements are conspicuous behaviours associated with emotional states, but this link remains debated. We investigated canine emotional states underlying tail wagging by systematically analysing differences in tail movements in a computer-controlled task encompassing two non-social Conditions - Rewarded (positive) and Unrewarded (negative), and two Epochs (pre-response and outcome anticipation). Using pose-tracking we found that 11 out of 23 dogs did not wag their tails in at least 75% of trials, suggesting that some dogs may inherently wag less or that tail wagging is primarily a social signal. Our results showed that dogs were more likely to wag during positive anticipation; whereas in the negative condition, despite tail amplitude being more prominent, increased speeds reflected arousal rather than valence. Further work should assess tail kinematics in social contexts to test and extend these findings.

animal behavior and cognition↗

bioRxiv2026

Good dog, bad wolf: Debunking evolutionary preparedness to fear wolves

The return of wolves to historical ranges often causes strong opposition, contrasting with widespread affection for domestic dogs. Evolutionary accounts suggest this discrepancy stems from deeply ingrained affective responses that predispose humans to fear wolves while fostering positive attachment to dogs. Using neuroimaging and self-report data from 42 participants, we investigated how defensive neural circuits linked to implicit threat detection are related to explicit threat evaluations of the two species. During functional MRI, participants viewed images of wolves, dogs, and snakes - the latter chosen for their strong engagement of predisposed threat-related responses - displaying either aggressive or non-aggressive behaviours. As predicted, aggressive displays of all species elicited stronger neural responses in threat-related brain areas. Snakes elicited stronger subcortical threat responses than wolves or dogs, while neural responses to wolves and dogs were largely indistinguishable when comparing aggressive displays. However, explicit threat evaluations strongly differed: wolves were perceived and rated as significantly more threatening than dogs, especially when the species exhibited aggressive displays. Together, these findings challenge accounts that humans are predisposed for negative responses to wolves, suggesting instead that our attitudes towards the species are shaped primarily by deliberate-evaluative processes rather than by implicit-automatic threat responses. This underscores the role of experience, knowledge, stereotypes, and socio-cultural mechanisms in shaping public perceptions of human-wildlife conflicts and conservation efforts. These results provide new insights into the cognitive and affective foundations of human-animal relationships, informing efforts to improve human-wildlife coexistence. Significance statementWhy are wolves feared while dogs are loved? One common explanation is that humans are evolutionarily predisposed to fear wolves as dangerous predators, while dogs, due to domestication, occupy a special niche in human lives. By comparing neural and behavioural responses to wolves, dogs and snakes, we show that wolves do not evoke stronger threat-related brain responses than dogs, despite being judged as the greater threat. However, wolves and dogs alike engage cortical systems associated with perception and evaluation, suggesting that cultural narratives and explicit reasoning, rather than hardwired automatic fear, underlie wolf aversion. These findings challenge evolutionary accounts of fear preparedness and suggest that negative attitudes towards wolves can be addressed through education, communication, and public engagement.

neuroscience↗

bioRxiv2025

Demonstrating inferential reasoning through behavioural choices: an experimental analysis

Is human language necessary for logical reasoning? Multiple studies address this by showing animals a bait hidden in either of two inverted cups, briefly lifting one exposing its content and then letting subjects choose. Consistent preference for the baited container is interpreted as evidence of inferential reasoning by exclusion ("if the bait is not here, it must be there"). More complex variations invoke metacognitive revision of hypotheses. We show that these protocols do not demonstrate logical reasoning. Instead, each event-stimulus elicits different actions and this suffices to choose correctly between them. We demonstrate this with experimental starlings and argue that other species may show similar behaviour, highlighting the need for careful controls when attributing high-level mental capacities such as reasoning or causal understanding.

animal behavior and cognition↗

bioRxiv2025

Neophilia in wolves and dogs

The study of domestication provides a unique opportunity to analyze the effects of natural selection in the attraction towards novelty --known as neophilia. This is chiefly due to the fact that selective pressures acting on domesticated animals are often greatly diminished or at least very different from their wild counterparts. In this study, we investigated the neophilic levels of three canine populations differing in their level of contact with human environments both from an evolutionary and ontogenetic perspective: wolves, pack-living dogs, and pet dogs. In order to study their neophilic response, we presented the animals with two objects. The first of these objects was displayed in the animals enclosure for several days. After the animals were habituated to this first object, the second one was introduced together with the first one in a shorter test session meant to explore their preferences for either of the objects. We predicted that dogs --and pet dogs in particular to display higher levels of neophilia, since human-created environments tend to change at a faster pace, and thus, a higher drive to explore these changes would be more beneficial than in a comparably more stable environment. Our results show no apparent differences between the populations in terms of latency to approach the new object, nor in the identity of the object they approached first. Nonetheless, all populations interacted more with the new object during the test phase. Wolves did also interact longer with the object presented in the first phase of the experiment.

animal behavior and cognition↗

bioRxiv2024

Inference in wolves and dogs: The "cups task", revisited

Inferential reasoning --the process of arriving at a conclusion from a series of premises-- has been studied in a multitude of animal species through the use of the "cups task" paradigm. In one of the versions of this set-up, two opaque cups --one baited, one empty-- are shaken in front of the animal. As only the baited cup makes a noise when shaken, the animals can locate the reward by inferring that only a baited cup would make noise, that an empty cup would make no noise, or both. In a previous iteration of this paradigm in wolves (Canis lupus) and dogs (Canis familiaris), wolves seemed to outperform dogs. However, due to the lack of control conditions, it was not possible to assess each species inference capabilities, nor how they related to each other. The current study adds several conditions in which the baited cup, the empty cup, or no cups are shaken, in order to tackle this issue. Our results seem to indicate that wolves and dogs made their choices not based on inference but on the saliency and order of the stimuli presented, something that seems in line with the previous study. We discuss the potential causes behind the animals performance, as well as proposing alternative paradigms that may be more apt to measure inference abilities in wolves and dogs.

animal behavior and cognition↗

bioRxiv2023

Going back to 'basics': Harlow's learning set task with wolves and dogs

To survive and reproduce, animals need to behave adaptively by adjusting their behavior to their environment, with learning facilitating some of these processes. Despite the fact that dogs were the subject species for Pavlovs original studies on learning, relatively little research has been done exploring dogs basic learning capabilities, and even fewer focused on the impact evolution may have had on this behavior. In order to investigate the effects of dog domestication on instrumental learning, we tested similarly-raised wolves and dogs in Harlows "learning set" task. In Experiment 1, several pairs of objects were presented to the animals, one of which was baited while the other was not. Both species performance gradually improved with each new set of objects, showing that they "learnt to learn" but no differences were found between the species in their learning speed. In Experiment 2 addressing reversal learning, once subjects had learned the association between one of the objects and the food reward, the contingencies were reversed and the previously unrewarded object of the same pair was now rewarded. Dogs performance in this task proved to be better than wolves, albeit only when considering just the first session of each reversal, suggesting that either the dogs had not learned the previous association as well as the wolves or that dogs are more flexible than wolves. Further research (possibly with the aid of refined methods such as touchscreens) would help ascertain whether these differences between wolves and dogs are persistent across different learning tasks.

animal behavior and cognition↗