Articles tagged with Foraging Behavior
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Researchers at Nagoya University found that about half of wood mice take time to examine nuts before selecting, potentially increasing their exposure to predators. Despite this risk, the extra time investment pays off as picky eaters are more likely to select undamaged chestnuts.
Simple items like hay feeders and giant rubber activity balls can improve horse behavior and reduce health issues such as ulcers and fragile leg bones. Researchers found that stabled horses displayed increased movement and reduced frustration behaviors when provided with enrichment tools.
Scientists discovered that leafcutter ants with large loads perform fewer antennae taps per step, limiting their ability to perceive the trail. By reducing the load, they increase antennae taps, highlighting the impact of oversized loads on trail navigation.
Researchers analyzed over 2,000 hours of underwater recordings to detect subtle shifts in red hind spawning behavior and population dynamics. The study found a notable shift in the balance of mating calls over the 12-year period, with calls linked to competition becoming dominant.
Researchers at UC Berkeley find that chimpanzees consume about 14 grams of pure ethanol per day, equivalent to one standard American drink. This chronic exposure suggests a dietary heritage of alcohol from our common ancestor with chimpanzees.
A new study by Florida Atlantic University reveals that every arm is capable of performing all action types, with front arms mainly used for exploration and back arms supporting movement. Octopuses demonstrated remarkable flexibility, showcasing complex motor control.
A recent study found that 62% of whale sharks in the Bird's Head Seascape off Indonesian West Papua have scars and injuries from preventable human causes. Simple interventions, such as modifying traditional fishing platforms and boat designs, could greatly lessen this burden on the local population.
Researchers found that humpback whales use their large pectoral flippers to achieve complex turns, allowing them to corral prey with efficiency. This unique strategy is energetically impractical for other whale species, making humpbacks the only ones capable of bubble-net feeding.
Research suggests that great-tailed grackles, a species expanding its range across the US, possess high levels of behavioral flexibility. This trait enables them to adjust their foraging behaviors and exploit human-provided resources. However, sociability and habitat use were not strongly correlated with flexibility.
Researchers from Florida Atlantic University's Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute have developed a multi-sensor biologging tag on the whitespotted eagle ray, enabling long attachment times and detailed data collection. The study provides insights into the rays' behavior, habitat use, and social interactions.
Researchers tracked adult penguins during return trips from foraging in the ocean off Argentina. The penguins used curved paths shaped by tides to conserve energy and take advantage of feeding opportunities.
Wild elephants closer to farms exhibit higher levels of neophilia, attracting them to unfamiliar objects and increasing the risk of encounters with humans. This behavior may provide an edge in finding food resources but also contributes to conflicts with local communities.
A Cooper's hawk learned to exploit long car queues at a street intersection to ambush unsuspecting birds. The bird understood the connection between sound signals and increasing car queue lengths, allowing it to hunt with remarkable precision.
Researchers have discovered that flamingos employ a range of active feeding strategies, including stomping, head jerking and beak chattering, to concentrate brine shrimp and small animals into their mouths. These behaviors create whirlpools and eddies that funnel prey towards the birds' mouths.
Researchers have discovered that urban areas experience a greater difference in wet bulb globe temperature between 0.5 m and 1.5 m above ground due to surface heat radiation, posing health risks to children and pets during extreme heat events. Total solar eclipses also alter atmospheric conditions and insect behavior, with some species...
New study models spatial patterns of grazing halos around coral reefs and finds that halo patterns can signal reef resilience. The research suggests that stable halos exist where herbivores are limited by predators, while oscillating halos may indicate a shift in system health.
Researchers used fossil data to predict the home range of Protemnodon, an extinct giant kangaroo, finding it had a smaller foraging range than expected. Climate change and habitat disruption led to local extinction when this small range could not find enough food.
Researchers found that foraging behaviors, physical characteristics, and diet are more nuanced than previously thought. The birds partition their habitat by foraging in different areas of the tree, but diet differences are minor.
Research reveals that infected starlings have limited access to high-quality foraging habitats, leading to poorer physical condition and lower chances of survival in their young. Infected birds spent less time foraging and were more picky in their choice of habitats, resulting in 12% lighter offspring.
Researchers found that flower constancy is an optimal strategy balancing cognitive and travel costs, not just a memory constraint. Bees decrease constancy when flowers have similar colors or are clustered, but maintain high constancy in mixed environments.
Researchers tracked hawksbill turtles migrating over 1,000km from nesting sites to foraging grounds in the Western Caribbean. The study found that turtles congregate in specific feeding hotspots despite riding with and against ocean currents.
A new study found that football teams move as though they are a single person, displaying Lévy walk patterns while hunting for the ball. This collective behavior suggests that individual players complement each other's actions in response to the game.
Researchers capture narwhals using their tusks to investigate, manipulate and influence the behavior of Arctic char fish. The study reveals first evidence of likely play, social learning and personality differences among individual narwhal.
Researchers tracked changes in baleen whale song detection over six years, finding correlations with shifts in foraging conditions and food availability. The study's findings suggest that whale song data can provide insights into the health of marine ecosystems and inform conservation efforts.
Researchers developed a new technique to estimate prey size and energy content from animal-borne camera footage, providing insights into predator-prey interactions and foraging strategies. This study on Humboldt, King and Tawaki/Fiordland penguins sheds light on the feeding behavior of marine wildlife.
Researchers from the University of Turku and Natural Resources Institute Finland found that combining accommodation and repelling fields can help mitigate crop damage and human-wildlife conflict. The study suggests using stakeholder knowledge and coordinated field design to prepare for goose damage and reduce costs.
Researchers studied rats navigating an L-shape track with a food-guarding robot. The rats created neurological maps of places to avoid after experiencing negative events and thought about these locations even after leaving the area. This finding provides insight into the neuroscience of common psychological conditions like anxiety.
The study found that wind turbines hinder the ability of bat species to access drinking sites, particularly during hot and dry summers. This can lead to reduced survival rates among female bats and their young, highlighting the need for careful consideration in wind turbine siting to avoid conflicting with species conservation.
Researchers found Andean bears prefer to forage in dry season for young, tender bromeliad plants on east-facing slopes of puna grassland. They actively select specific food resources within the grasslands, indicating their nutritional importance, while avoiding areas with livestock.
Researchers have gained a better understanding of mosasaur evolution, relationships, and behaviors through advanced imaging technologies and comparative anatomy. A new study found evidence of cannibalism in mosasaurs and illuminated patterns of foraging area segregation and feeding diversity.
Researchers found that desert ants rely on the polarity of the geomagnetic field to navigate during learning walks, contradicting previous findings in other insects. The team manipulated magnetic fields and observed the ants' behavior, concluding that a compass-like navigation system is useful for short-distance navigation.
Archaeologists have discovered that early North Americans made needles from the bones of fur-bearers, including foxes, hares, and cats, which were likely used to create garments for warmth. The findings provide strong evidence for tailored garment production using bone needles and fur-bearing animal pelts.
A team of FSU researchers created the first model that explains the phenomenon of trail formation to multiple food sources. The model reveals that ants will leave pheromone trails connecting their colony to multiple food sources when they're available, creating an equilibrium where equidistant food sources maintain multiple trails.
Swallow populations infected with parasites exhibit altered movement patterns, including reduced home ranges and foraging activity. This can lead to decreased foraging success and increased mortality rates.
Researchers found that Weddell seals strategically conduct extreme dives earlier in the day to maximize their oxygen stores and foraging success. By avoiding midday dives, the seals can spend more time underwater, taking advantage of high-light conditions, which is ideal for visual hunting.
A study in mice reveals that individualistic reward-seeking strategies predict responses to nicotine, with profiles influenced by personality traits and dopamine activity. The findings suggest environmental adaptations shape behavioral traits and sensitivity to nicotine, potentially contributing to addiction susceptibility.
Researchers used drone footage to study gray whales' foraging behaviors, finding that younger whales use forward swimming while older whales headstand. The study also revealed that bubble blasts help regulate buoyancy while feeding in shallow water.
Researchers used cutting-edge molecular biology tools and GPS tracking data to determine the dietary habits of different animal species in Yellowstone. They found that feeding behaviors depend on body size, with smaller species diversifying their diets in summer and larger animals competing for resources in winter.
A new study reveals that possum shrimp rely on distinctive chemical cues from their underwater caves to find their way back. Researchers found that each cave had a unique water-borne odor bouquet, which helped the shrimp navigate between them.
Researchers have captured sub-adult male northern elephant seals returning to a deep-sea cabled observatory off Canada's British Columbia coast. The footage provides new insight into their fish foraging behavior at depth.
Researchers discovered that solitary humpback whales in SE Alaska craft complex bubble nets to catch krill, allowing them to capture up to seven times more prey without extra energy. This behavior sheds light on how migratory humpback whales consume enough calories to traverse the Pacific Ocean.
Researchers detected a 24-hour cycle of diving during the spring, with whales swimming deepest in the afternoon to track prey. Two bowhead whales were found to dive in synchrony over a week at a time, even when separated by up to 100 km.
Researchers studied a flock of Chilean flamingos locked indoors due to avian influenza, finding they became inactive upon release, but more alert while indoors. The study suggests providing varied activities can help alleviate bird stress during lockdowns.
A study published in Ecological Applications found that wolves' return to northeast Washington has had a limited impact on white-tailed deer populations. Habitat quality and cougar predation were the primary factors shaping deer populations, with wolf predation having a smaller effect.
Researchers found that blue and great tits possess 'episodic-like' memory, recalling past experiences such as food availability, location, and timing. This ability may help the birds cope with environmental stress and fluctuation influenced by climate change.
Researchers found that ants need three main things to succeed when hitchhiking: climbing ability, foraging/colonizing behaviors, and temperature tolerance. The study tracked the spread of invasive ants through non-commercial transport on personal vehicles, highlighting a significant threat to native species.
A new study found that animals use a wide range of strategies to accomplish tasks, many of which are just as effective as the optimal solution but require less brain power. The research provides a theoretical framework for understanding these 'good enough' strategies and their potential applications in animal behavior.
A study in the Panamanian rainforest found that larger-brained primates did not outperform smaller-brained mammals in finding fruit. The research suggests that intelligence may not be directly linked to foraging efficiency, but could be related to other factors such as episodic memory or social complexity.
The study reveals that Antarctic minke whales switch companions frequently, forming short-term associations and engaging in both foraging and non-foraging activities. Larger individuals tend to socialize more, and this interaction correlates with reduced feeding efforts.
Harbor porpoises spend up to 60% of their day hunting small fish to stay warm in cold waters. New research shows that this strategy makes them more vulnerable to noise from motor boats and disturbances from humans.
Researchers used a new integrated wireless system to record brain activity in frontal areas of macaques' brains while they foraged. The results indicate that foraging strategies are based on a cortical model of reward dynamics.
A recent study found humpback whale entanglements in BC fish farms are extremely rare, with only eight instances over 13 years. Young whales' curiosity may be a contributing factor, according to researchers.
Researchers studied a subpopulation of transient killer whales that prey on marine mammals in the open ocean. They found two distinct foraging behaviors: independent diving and coordinated groups hunting along submarine canyons.
The study reveals that two neural pathways in the paraventricular nucleus of the thalamus participate in dynamic regulation of goal pursuits, with PVT+ neurons encoding execution and termination of actions, respectively. Activity in these neurons mirrors motivation parameters such as vigor and satiety.
Researchers from the University of South Australia discovered that eating faeces helps birds absorb lost or deficient nutrients and adjust to seasonal variations in food sources. This coprophagy enables them to adapt to new environments and is especially important for long-migratory birds.
The McGill study found that the ability to solve foraging problems is the only predictor of innovative behavior and brain size in wild birds. The researchers studied 203 individual animals from 15 species, including 13 wild-caught individuals.
A new study suggests that fish are shifting their focus from less abundant prey to more abundant prey as waters become warmer, leading to a mismatch between their energetic needs and actual food intake. This flexible foraging behaviour may make communities more vulnerable to climate change, increasing the risk of extinctions.
Studies reveal how primates modify behaviors to care for themselves and others despite physical disabilities. Behavioral flexibility is crucial, allowing them to adjust species-typical behaviors and innovate new ways to participate in daily activities.
Researchers used movement behavior models to track leatherback sea turtles to previously unknown foraging locations along the US east coast. The study found that leatherbacks use specific areas in the South Atlantic Bight, Mid-Atlantic Bight, and southern New England as both migratory corridors and foraging grounds.
A study by Konstanz biologists reveals that the moths use visual feedback to move and correct the movement of their proboscis, similar to humans grasping objects. The animals' efficient way of working is also great models for applied research in robotics and understanding the visual control of appendages.