title: Western scrub-jays do not appear to attend to functionality in Aesop's Fable experiments.
abstract: Western scrub-jays are known for their highly discriminatory and flexible behaviors in a caching (food storing) context. However, it is unknown whether their cognitive abilities are restricted to a caching context. To explore this question, we tested scrub-jays in a non-caching context using the Aesop's Fable paradigm, where a partially filled tube of water contains a floating food reward and objects must be inserted to displace the water and bring the food within reach. We tested four birds, but only two learned to drop stones proficiently. Of these, one bird participated in 4/5 experiments and one in 2/5 experiments. Both birds passed one experiment, but without attending to the functional differences of the objects, and failed the other experiments. Scrub-jays were not motivated to participate in these experiments, suggesting that either this paradigm was ecologically irrelevant or perhaps their flexibility is restricted to a caching context.
authors.affiliation: SAGE Center for the Study of the Mind, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA, United States; Current affiliation: Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Corina J
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Logan
authors.affiliation: Department of Integrative Biology and Physiology, University of California , Los Angeles, CA , United States.
authors.forename: Brigit D
authors.initials: BD
authors.lastname: Harvey
authors.affiliation: Department of Integrative Biology and Physiology, University of California, Los Angeles, CA, United States; Laboratory of Neuroendocrinology, Brain Research Institute, University of California, Los Angeles, CA, United States; Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California, Los Angeles, CA, United States.
authors.forename: Barney A
authors.initials: BA
authors.lastname: Schlinger
authors.affiliation: Department of Integrative Biology and Physiology, University of California , Los Angeles, CA , United States.
authors.forename: Michelle
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Rensel
keywords: Aesop’s Fable; Comparative cognition; Flexible behavior; Non-caching paradigm; Western scrub-jay