title: Ecology of information: social transmission dynamics within groups of non-social insects.
abstract: While many studies focus on how animals use public information, the dynamics of information spread and maintenance within groups, i.e. the 'ecology of information', have received little attention. Here we use fruitflies trained to lay eggs on specific substrates to implement information into groups containing both trained and untrained individuals. We quantify inter-individual interactions and then measure the spread of oviposition preference with behavioural tests. Untrained individuals increase their interactive approaches in the presence of trained individuals, and the oviposition preference transmission is directly proportional to how much trained and untrained individuals interact. Unexpectedly, the preference of trained individuals to their trained oviposition substrate decreases after interactions with untrained individuals, leading to an overall informational loss. This shows that social learning alone is not enough to support informational stability.
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire Evolution, Génomes et Spéciation, UPR9034 CNRS, bat 13 avenue de la Terrasse, 91198 Gif-sur-Yvette Cedex, France Département de Biologie, Université Paris-Sud, 91405 Orsay Cedex, France.
authors.forename: Marine
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Battesti
authors.affiliation: Département Ecologie, Physiologie et Ethologie, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Strasbourg, France Institut Pluridisciplinaire Hubert Curien, Université de Strasbourg, Strasbourg, France.
authors.forename: Cristian
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Pasquaretta
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire Evolution, Génomes et Spéciation, UPR9034 CNRS, bat 13 avenue de la Terrasse, 91198 Gif-sur-Yvette Cedex, France Département de Biologie, Université Paris-Sud, 91405 Orsay Cedex, France.
authors.forename: Celine
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Moreno
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire Evolution, Génomes et Spéciation, UPR9034 CNRS, bat 13 avenue de la Terrasse, 91198 Gif-sur-Yvette Cedex, France Département de Biologie, Université Paris-Sud, 91405 Orsay Cedex, France.
authors.forename: Serafino
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Teseo
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire Evolution, Génomes et Spéciation, UPR9034 CNRS, bat 13 avenue de la Terrasse, 91198 Gif-sur-Yvette Cedex, France Département de Biologie, Université Paris-Sud, 91405 Orsay Cedex, France.
authors.forename: Dominique
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Joly
authors.affiliation: Département Ecologie, Physiologie et Ethologie, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Strasbourg, France Institut Pluridisciplinaire Hubert Curien, Université de Strasbourg, Strasbourg, France.
authors.forename: Elizabeth
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Klensch
authors.affiliation: Département Ecologie, Physiologie et Ethologie, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Strasbourg, France Institut Pluridisciplinaire Hubert Curien, Université de Strasbourg, Strasbourg, France.
authors.forename: Odile
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Petit
authors.affiliation: Département Ecologie, Physiologie et Ethologie, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Strasbourg, France Institut Pluridisciplinaire Hubert Curien, Université de Strasbourg, Strasbourg, France.
authors.forename: Cedric
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Sueur
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire Evolution, Génomes et Spéciation, UPR9034 CNRS, bat 13 avenue de la Terrasse, 91198 Gif-sur-Yvette Cedex, France Département de Biologie, Université Paris-Sud, 91405 Orsay Cedex, France frederic.mery@legs.cnrs-gif.fr.
authors.forename: Frederic
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Mery
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D004331:Drosophila melanogaster / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D007858:Learning; D010058:Oviposition; D012919:Social Behavior
keywords: Drosophila; information; oviposition; social interaction; social learning