Socially Driven Consistent Behavioural Differences during Development in Common Ravens and Carrion Crows

PLoS One. 2016 Feb 5;11(2):e0148822. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0148822. eCollection 2016.

Abstract

Consistent individual differences in behaviour, or 'personality', are likely to be influenced by development, social context, and species ecology, though few comparative, longitudinal studies exist. Here, we investigated the role of development and social context on personality variation in two identically reared, social corvids: common ravens and carrion crows. We repeatedly presented subjects with a variety of novel food and objects, while alone and in a primarily sibling subgroup, from fledging to sub-adulthood. We predicted that consistent individual differences would emerge later in development, and that conspecific presence would facilitate behavioural similarities. In contrast to our predictions, we found that individuals of both species were highly inconsistent in their behavioural responses throughout the development period. In line with our predictions, though in the ravens only, conspecific presence promoted behavioural similarities as individuals were strongly shaped by their subgroup, and it is likely that these effects were driven by social context rather than relatedness. We discuss these findings in relation to developmental steps and the role of social relations in these species. Overall, our findings highlight that these two species are highly adaptable in their behaviour, and the ravens in particular are strongly influenced by their social environment, which may facilitate cooperation and social learning.

Publication types

  • Comparative Study
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Adaptation, Physiological
  • Animals
  • Behavior, Animal*
  • Crows / growth & development
  • Crows / physiology*
  • Environment*
  • Female
  • Male
  • Personality
  • Social Behavior*
  • Species Specificity

Associated data

  • figshare/10.6084/M9.FIGSHARE.1529828

Grants and funding

RM was supported by the Vienna Science and Technology Fund through project CS11-008 to CS and by the Austrian Science Fund through project Y366-B17 and W1234 to TB. KLL was supported by the Leibniz Competition (SAW-2013-IGB-2). The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.