Selection for specific behavioural traits does not influence preference of chasing motion and visual strategy in dogs
Abstract Perception of inanimate objects as animate based on motion cues alone seems to be present in phylogenetically distant species, from birth (humans and chicks). However, we do not know whether the species’ social and ecological environment has an influence on this phenomenon. Dogs serve as a...
| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Nature Portfolio
2022-02-01
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| Series: | Scientific Reports |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-022-06382-6 |
| _version_ | 1819274953585852416 |
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| author | Judit Abdai Ádám Miklósi |
| author_facet | Judit Abdai Ádám Miklósi |
| author_sort | Judit Abdai |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Perception of inanimate objects as animate based on motion cues alone seems to be present in phylogenetically distant species, from birth (humans and chicks). However, we do not know whether the species’ social and ecological environment has an influence on this phenomenon. Dogs serve as a unique species to investigate whether selection for specific behavioural traits influences animacy perception. We tested purebred companion dogs, and assigned them into two groups based on the type of work they were originally selected for: (1) Chasers, tracking and chasing prey; (2) Retrievers, mark and remember downed game. We displayed isosceles triangles presenting a chasing pattern vs moving independently, in parallel on a screen. We hypothesised that Chasers prefer to look at chasing and Retrievers eventually focus their visual attention on the independent motion. Overall, we did not find a significant difference between groups regarding the looking duration of dogs or the frequency of their gaze alternation between the chasing and independent motions. Thus it seems that selection for specific traits does not influence the perception of animate entities within the species. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-23T23:16:37Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-ee500dc26ca849f68b18cc80d445e29d |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2045-2322 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-23T23:16:37Z |
| publishDate | 2022-02-01 |
| publisher | Nature Portfolio |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Scientific Reports |
| spelling | doaj.art-ee500dc26ca849f68b18cc80d445e29d2022-12-21T17:26:29ZengNature PortfolioScientific Reports2045-23222022-02-011211810.1038/s41598-022-06382-6Selection for specific behavioural traits does not influence preference of chasing motion and visual strategy in dogsJudit Abdai0Ádám Miklósi1MTA-ELTE Comparative Ethology Research GroupMTA-ELTE Comparative Ethology Research GroupAbstract Perception of inanimate objects as animate based on motion cues alone seems to be present in phylogenetically distant species, from birth (humans and chicks). However, we do not know whether the species’ social and ecological environment has an influence on this phenomenon. Dogs serve as a unique species to investigate whether selection for specific behavioural traits influences animacy perception. We tested purebred companion dogs, and assigned them into two groups based on the type of work they were originally selected for: (1) Chasers, tracking and chasing prey; (2) Retrievers, mark and remember downed game. We displayed isosceles triangles presenting a chasing pattern vs moving independently, in parallel on a screen. We hypothesised that Chasers prefer to look at chasing and Retrievers eventually focus their visual attention on the independent motion. Overall, we did not find a significant difference between groups regarding the looking duration of dogs or the frequency of their gaze alternation between the chasing and independent motions. Thus it seems that selection for specific traits does not influence the perception of animate entities within the species.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-022-06382-6 |
| spellingShingle | Judit Abdai Ádám Miklósi Selection for specific behavioural traits does not influence preference of chasing motion and visual strategy in dogs Scientific Reports |
| title | Selection for specific behavioural traits does not influence preference of chasing motion and visual strategy in dogs |
| title_full | Selection for specific behavioural traits does not influence preference of chasing motion and visual strategy in dogs |
| title_fullStr | Selection for specific behavioural traits does not influence preference of chasing motion and visual strategy in dogs |
| title_full_unstemmed | Selection for specific behavioural traits does not influence preference of chasing motion and visual strategy in dogs |
| title_short | Selection for specific behavioural traits does not influence preference of chasing motion and visual strategy in dogs |
| title_sort | selection for specific behavioural traits does not influence preference of chasing motion and visual strategy in dogs |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-022-06382-6 |
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