Animal culture

Animal culture can be defined as the ability of non-human animals to learn and transmit behaviors through processes of social or cultural learning. Culture is increasingly seen as a process, involving the social transmittance of behavior among peers and between generations. It can involve the transmission of novel behaviors or regional variations that are independent of genetic or ecological factors. The existence of culture in non-humans has been a contentious subject, sometimes forcing researchers to rethink "what it is to be human". The notion of culture in other animals dates back to Aristotle in classical antiquity, and more recently to Charles Darwin, but the association of other animals' actions with the actual word 'culture' originated with Japanese primatologists' discoveries of socially-transmitted food behaviours in the 1940s. Evidence for animal culture is often based on studies of feeding behaviors, vocalizations, predator avoidance, mate selection, and migratory routes. An important area of study for animal culture is vocal learning, the ability to make new sounds through imitation. Most species cannot learn to imitate sounds. Some can learn how to use innate vocalizations in new ways. Only a few species can learn new calls. The transmission of vocal repertoires, including some types of bird vocalization, can be viewed as social processes involving cultural transmission. Some evidence suggests that the ability to engage in vocal learning depends on the development of specialized brain circuitry, detected in humans, dolphins, bats and some birds. The lack of common ancestors suggests that the basis for vocal learning has evolved independently through evolutionary convergence. Animal culture can be an important consideration in conservation management. As of 2020, culture and sociality were included in the aspects of the management framework of the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS).

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Imitation Learning in Discounted Linear MDPs without exploration assumptions

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Tool use by non-humans

Tool use by non-humans is a phenomenon in which a non-human animal uses any kind of tool in order to achieve a goal such as acquiring food and water, grooming, combat, defence, communication, recreation or construction. Originally thought to be a skill possessed only by humans, some tool use requires a sophisticated level of cognition. There is considerable discussion about the definition of what constitutes a tool and therefore which behaviours can be considered true examples of tool use.

Imitation

Imitation (from Latin imitatio, "a copying, imitation") is a behavior whereby an individual observes and replicates another's behavior. Imitation is also a form of that leads to the "development of traditions, and ultimately our culture. It allows for the transfer of information (behaviors, customs, etc.) between individuals and down generations without the need for genetic inheritance." The word imitation can be applied in many contexts, ranging from animal training to politics.

Animal communication

Animal communication is the transfer of information from one or a group of animals (sender or senders) to one or more other animals (receiver or receivers) that affects the current or future behavior of the receivers. Information may be sent intentionally, as in a courtship display, or unintentionally, as in the transfer of scent from predator to prey with kairomones. Information may be transferred to an "audience" of several receivers. Animal communication is a rapidly growing area of study in disciplines including animal behavior, sociology, neurology and animal cognition.