Exclusion performance in dwarf goats (Capra aegagrus hircus) and sheep (Ovis orientalis aries).
Using a comparative approach, we investigated the ability of dwarf goats and sheep to use direct and indirect information about the location of a food reward in an object-choice task. Subjects had to choose between two cups with only one covering a reward. Before making a choice, subjects received information about the baited (direct information) or non-baited cup (indirect information). Both goats and sheep were able to use direct information (presence of food) in the object choice task. After controlling for local enhancement, we found that goats rather than sheep were able to use indirect information (i.e., the absence of food) to find a reward. The actual test setup could not clarify whether individual goats were able to inferentially reason about the content of the baited cup when only shown the content of the non-baited cup or if they simply avoided the empty cup in that situation. As browsing species, feral and wild goats exhibit highly selective feeding behaviour compared to the rather unselective grazing sheep. The potential influence of this species-specific foraging flexibility of goats and sheep for using direct and indirect information to find a food reward is discussed in relation to a higher aversion to losses in food acquisition in goats compared to sheep.
Department of Animal Husbandry and Ecology, Institute of Agricultural and Nutritional Sciences, Martin-Luther-University, Halle, Germany.
Christian
C
Nawroth
Department of Animal Husbandry and Ecology, Institute of Agricultural and Nutritional Sciences, Martin-Luther-University, Halle, Germany.
Eberhard
E
von Borell
Institute of Behavioural Physiology, Leibniz Institute for Farm Animal Biology, Dummerstorf, Germany.
Jan
J
Langbein
D000818:Animals; D002755:Choice Behavior / Q000502:physiology*; D005247:Feeding Behavior / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D005502:Food; D006041:Goats / Q000502:physiology*; D012201:Reward; D012756:Sheep / Q000502:physiology*