The comparative psychology of marsupials

Wynne, Clive D. L.; McLean, Ian

doi:10.1080/00049539908255344

Cited by 28 publications

(16 citation statements)

References 52 publications

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“…Marsupial species were traditionally incorporated into studies of learning so that the performance of eutherian mammals could be compared with that of a group presumed to be evolutionarily less "complex" (for a review, see Wynne & McLean, 1999). Phylogenetic analyses have now revealed that marsupial mammals diverged from placental mammals about 100 million years ago and represent a parallel evolutionary lineage (Springer, Westerman, & Kirsch, 1994).…”

Section: Marsupial Mammalsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Social learning about predators: a review and prospectus

Griffin

2004

Learning & Behavior

409

298

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In comparison with social learning about food, social learning about predators has received little attention. Yet such research is of potential interest to students of animal cognition and conservation biologists. I summarize evidence for social learning about predators by fish, birds, eutherian mammals, and marsupials. I consider the proposal that this phenomenon is a case of S-S classical conditioning and suggest that evolution may have modified some of the properties of learning to accommodate for the requirements of learning socially about danger. I discuss some between-species differences in the properties of socially acquired predator avoidance and suggest that learning may be faster and more robust in species in which alarm behavior reliably predicts high predatory threat. Finally, I highlight how studies of socially acquired predator avoidance can inform the design of prerelease antipredator training programs for endangered species.

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Section: Marsupial Mammalsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Social learning about predators: a review and prospectus

Griffin

2004

Learning & Behavior

409

298

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“…Such a program would need to take cultural evolution into account, which may have been far more important than genetic evolution in the emergence of human cognition (Laland & Brown 2002). Increasing costs and a greatly increased regulatory burden have led to a reduction in the range of species studied by psychologists in recent decades (Wynne & McLean 1999). Given that evolutionary considerations are of limited value when it comes to understanding the mechanisms of cognition, we believe a systematic program of reinvigorated comparative psychology is essential to understand the uniqueness of the human condition.…”

Section: A C K N O W L E D G M E N T Preparation Of This Commentary Wmentioning

confidence: 99%

Darwin's mistake: Explaining the discontinuity between human and nonhuman minds

2008

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Over the last quarter century, the dominant tendency in comparative cognitive psychology has been to emphasize the similarities between human and nonhuman minds and to downplay the differences as "one of degree and not of kind" (Darwin 1871). In the present target article, we argue that Darwin was mistaken: the profound biological continuity between human and nonhuman animals masks an equally profound discontinuity between human and nonhuman minds. To wit, there is a significant discontinuity in the degree to which human and nonhuman animals are able to approximate the higher-order, systematic, relational capabilities of a physical symbol system (PSS) (Newell 1980). We show that this symbolic-relational discontinuity pervades nearly every domain of cognition and runs much deeper than even the spectacular scaffolding provided by language or culture alone can explain. We propose a representational-level specification as to where human and nonhuman animals' abilities to approximate a PSS are similar and where they differ. We conclude by suggesting that recent symbolic-connectionist models of cognition shed new light on the mechanisms that underlie the gap between human and nonhuman minds.

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“…In New Zealand they threaten the native bird population by decimating the forests and eating birds eggs, and they spread TB to cattle. Understanding the sensorium of pest animals such as possums is useful in developing strategies to control them (Brockie, Fitzgerald, Green, Morris, & Pearson, 1984; Clout & Sarre, 1997; Wynne & McLean, 1999), but very little is known about possums' senses. For instance, only four studies concerned with their sense of hearing have been published (Aitkin, Gates, & Kenyon, 1979; Gates & Aitkin, 1982; Signal, Foster, & Temple, 2001; Winter, 1976).…”

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confidence: 99%

Behavior‐based Assessment of the Auditory Abilities of Brushtail Possums

Osugi

Foster

Temple

et al. 2011

J Exper Analysis Behavior

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Brushtail possums (Trichosurus vulpecula) were trained to press a right lever when a tone was presented (a tone-on trial) and a left lever when a tone was not presented (a tone-off trial) to gain access to food. During training the tone was set at 80 dB(A), with a frequency of 0.88 kH for 3 possums and of 4 kH for the other 2. Once accuracy was over 90% correct across five consecutive sessions, a test session was conducted where the intensity of the tone was reduced by 8 dB(A) over blocks of 20 trials until accuracy over a block fell below 60%. After each test session, training sessions were reintroduced and continued until accuracy was again over 90%, when another test session was conducted. This process continued until there were at least five test sessions at that tone frequency. The same procedure was then used with frequencies of 0.20, 0.88, 2, 4, 10, 12.5, 15, 20, 30, and 35 kHz. Percentage correct and d' decreased approximately linearly for all possums as tone intensity reduced. Both sets of lines were shallowest at the higher frequencies and steepest at the lower frequencies. Hit and false alarm rates mirrored each other at high frequencies but were asymmetric at lower frequencies. Equal d' contours showed that sensitivity increased from 2 to 15 kHz and continued to be high over 20 to 35 kHz. The possums remained sensitive to the 20 to 35 kHz tones even at low intensities. The present study is the first to report the abilities of possum to detect tones over this range of frequencies and its results support the findings of a microelectrode mapping survey of possums' auditory cortex.

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The comparative psychology of marsupials

Cited by 28 publications

References 52 publications

Social learning about predators: a review and prospectus

Social learning about predators: a review and prospectus

Darwin's mistake: Explaining the discontinuity between human and nonhuman minds

Behavior‐based Assessment of the Auditory Abilities of Brushtail Possums

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