Animal Behavior

Look Who’s Watching:

How Social Cognition Shapes Animal Behavior

in Cichlid Fish (A. burtoni)

Social animals (including humans) live in physically unique and social environments requiring them to observe and rapidly respond to the social and environmental context (cues) of their surroundings. An observed method that some species use in order to adjust to their social setting is altering their behavior based on “who” or “what” is present at any given time. A key social influence for many species, including the experimentally studied Cichlid Fish, is social rank (dominance hierarchy) (1). This is an element in animal societies that allows for them to not only become vastly aware of their social environment, but also assists these animals in modifying their aggressive (dominant) and courtship behaviors in a way that is beneficial for reproductive as well as social survival (1). This ranking system typically regulates access to reproduction and other resources, among other consequences for individuals. Researchers and scientists have determined that reproductive success is arguably the most vital event in any animals’ life. That being said, it is important to understand how reproduction can and often is regulated by social status (dominance hierarchies) (2). This article reviews evidence from a model social system in which reproductive success is highly controlled by social status within the group. Surprisingly, changes in social status have profound effects over very short time scales and radically alter overt behavior, as well as physiological, cellular, and molecular factors that regulate reproductive capacity (2).

Examining Attention Hierarchies

In order to test how social status influences animal behavior such as aggressiveness and courting behaviors, researchers for this purpose have used groups of Cichlid Fish to model the influence of a social group on aggression and discover whether there is a dominance hierarchy(2). In this experimental model,...