Ravens? social networks play a major role in how they learn about their environment (Copyright: Ipek G. Kulahci).
One of the benefits of living together is gaining new information from group members. Once a group member starts displaying a new behavior, this behavior frequently spreads to the rest of the group. In a recent study on ravens, Cognitive Biologists Christine Schwab and Thomas Bugnyar from the University of Vienna together with Ipek Kulahci and Daniel Rubenstein from Princeton University and William Hoppitt from Leeds University showed that being socially connected to others is critical in gaining new information. Their findings are published in Royal Society Open Science. Transmission of information from one individual to another forms the basis of long-term traditions and culture, and is critical in adjusting to changing environmental conditions. Animals frequently observe each other to learn about food, predators and their social environment. The study fills an important gap in our understanding of how different types of social connections affect animals? ability to learn from the behavior of others.
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