Evidence for the perceptual origin of right-sided feeding biases in cetaceans

Karenina, Karina; Giljov, Andrey; Ivkovich, Tatiana V.; Malashichev, Yegor

doi:10.1007/s10071-015-0899-4

Cited by 31 publications

(41 citation statements)

References 22 publications

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“…Findings in Karenina et al, 2017 demonstrates that lateralization regarding spatial position near the mother in young occurs in a diverse range of vertebrate species [ 11 ]. Other mother/calf cetacean lateralization studies have been presented for beluga whales [ 13 , 14 ] and killer whales [ 15 , 16 ] with similar findings; these studies showed that social behaviors correspond to the right brain hemisphere and foraging behavior corresponds to the left brain hemisphere. Findings from a laterality study conducted on adult wild Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphin ( Tursiops aduncus ) found that during inquisitive approaches to a human observer (diver), the dolphin used the left eye significantly more frequently than the right eye, and rubbing was conducted significantly more frequently with the left flipper than with the right flipper [ 17 ].…”

Section: Introductionsupporting

confidence: 68%

A Note on Suckling Behavior and Laterality in Nursing Humpback Whale Calves from Underwater Observations

Zoidis¹,

Lomac-MacNair²

2017

Animals

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Simple SummaryNursing in large baleen whales and specifically the humpback whale is not well documented and difficult to capture in real time. Using underwater video documentation techniques, we collected digital video footage of humpback whale nursing events. From this, we provide an enhanced descriptive account of humpback whale suckling and recorded milk in the water near a nursing mother and calf column for the first time. As part of our investigation into nursing behaviors, we assessed if humpback calves demonstrated any patterns of laterality during nursing events. A pattern of laterality was noted in that all suckling events had a right side bias. Nursing bouts were short and intermittent, which coincides with what is known of larger terrestrial mammals such as the African elephant and other baleen whales. These shorter nursing periods are likely are due to the energetics of baleen whale milk coupled with the calf′s short respiration cycle before it has to return to the surface to breathe. Our study shows that underwater observations in marine mammal science provide valuable insight into real time events not easily accessible from vessel or aerial platforms.AbstractWe investigated nursing behavior on the Hawaiian breeding grounds for first year humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) calves. We observed and video-documented underwater events with nursing behavior from five different whale groups. The observed nursing events include behaviors where a calf positions itself at a 30–45° angle to the midline of the mother’s body, with its mouth touching her mammary slit (i.e., suckling position). On two occasions, milk in the water column was recorded in close proximity to a mother/calf pair, and on one occasion, milk was recorded 2.5 min after suckling observed. Nursing events, where the calf was located in the suckling position, were found to be short in duration with a mean of 30.6 s (range 15.0–55.0, standard deviation (SD) = 16.9). All observations of the calf in the suckling position (n = 5, 100%) were with the calf located on the right side of the mother, suggesting a potential for right side laterality preference in the context of nursing behavior. Our study provides insight into mother/calf behaviors from a unique underwater vantage. Results supplement previous accounts of humpback whale nursing in Hawaiian waters, validate mother/calf positioning, document milk in the water column, and introduce the potential for laterality in nursing behavior for humpback whale calves.

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Section: Introductionsupporting

confidence: 68%

A Note on Suckling Behavior and Laterality in Nursing Humpback Whale Calves from Underwater Observations

Zoidis¹,

Lomac-MacNair²

2017

Animals

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“…These subdivisions of function have been determined by testing a range of non-human species, primarily but not exclusively domestic chicks [15], pigeons [16], zebra fish [17], sheep [18] and dogs [19]. Observation of some species in the wild has confirmed that these asymmetries are seen not only in laboratory settings but also in natural habitats; for example, in Australian magpies responding to a predator [20] and in cetaceans feeding with a right side bias [21].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Matter of Degree: Strength of Brain Asymmetry and Behaviour

Rogers

2017

Symmetry

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Abstract:Research on a growing number of vertebrate species has shown that the left and right sides of the brain process information in different ways and that lateralized brain function is expressed in both specific and broad aspects of behaviour. This paper reviews the available evidence relating strength of lateralization to behavioural/cognitive performance. It begins by considering the relationship between limb preference and behaviour in humans and primates from the perspectives of direction and strength of lateralization. In birds, eye preference is used as a reflection of brain asymmetry and the strength of this asymmetry is associated with behaviour important for survival (e.g., visual discrimination of food from non-food and performance of two tasks in parallel). The same applies to studies on aquatic species, mainly fish but also tadpoles, in which strength of lateralization has been assessed as eye preferences or turning biases. Overall, the empirical evidence across vertebrate species points to the conclusion that stronger lateralization is advantageous in a wide range of contexts. Brief discussion of interhemispheric communication follows together with discussion of experiments that examined the effects of sectioning pathways connecting the left and right sides of the brain, or of preventing the development of these left-right connections. The conclusion reached is that degree of functional lateralization affects behaviour in quite similar ways across vertebrate species. Although the direction of lateralization is also important, in many situations strength of lateralization matters more. Finally, possible interactions between asymmetry in different sensory modalities is considered.

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“…Some foraging behaviors of the bottlenose dolphin were also found to be lateralized, meaning a localization of function or activity on one side of the body in preference to the other (e.g., Silber and Fertl, 1995;Lewis and Schroeder, 2003). It was suggested that the observed right-sided lateralization in dolphins (but also whales) when foraging may be associated with the visual perception of prey (Karenina et al, 2016).…”

Section: Behavioral Data On Visionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Sensory Perception in Cetaceans: Part I—Current Knowledge about Dolphin Senses As a Representative Species

et al. 2016

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A large part of the literature on sensory perception and behavior in dolphins is devoted to its well-developed vocal and echolocation abilities. In this review, we aim to augment current knowledge by examining the literature on dolphins' entire "Merkwelt" (which refers to everything a subject perceives, creating a crucial part of the subject's Umwelt). We will show that despite extensive knowledge on audition, aspects such as context relatedness, the social function of vocalizations or socio-sexual recognition, remain poorly understood. Therefore, we propose areas for further lines of investigation. Recent studies have shown that the sensory world of dolphins might well be much more diverse than initially thought. Indeed, although underwater and aerial visual systems differ in dolphins, they have both been shown to be important. Much debated electro-and magnetoreception appear to be functional senses according to recent studies. Finally, another neglected area is chemoreception. We will summarize neuroanatomical and physiological data on olfaction and taste, as well as corresponding behavioral evidence. Taken together, we will identify a number of technical and conceptual reasons for why chemosensory data appear contradictory, which is much debated in the literature. In summary, this article aims to provide both an overview of the current knowledge on dolphin perception, but also offer a basis for further discussion and potential new lines of research.Keywords: cetaceans, Delphinidae, Tursiops truncatus, audition, vision, electroreception, magnetoreception, chemoreception DOLPHIN'S UMWELT Sensory perception is essential for the survival of organisms, be it for the detection of (un)favorable physical conditions, the presence/absence of food or predators, the detection of communication signals or the recognition of social partners. It is crucial for any species to perceive regularities and changes in the properties of their abiotic and biotic environment.

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Evidence for the perceptual origin of right-sided feeding biases in cetaceans

Cited by 31 publications

References 22 publications

A Note on Suckling Behavior and Laterality in Nursing Humpback Whale Calves from Underwater Observations

A Note on Suckling Behavior and Laterality in Nursing Humpback Whale Calves from Underwater Observations

A Matter of Degree: Strength of Brain Asymmetry and Behaviour

Sensory Perception in Cetaceans: Part I—Current Knowledge about Dolphin Senses As a Representative Species

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