(Press-News.org) Thomas Bugnyar and his team have been studying the behavior of approximately 300 wild ravens in the Northern Austrian Alps for years. They observed that ravens slowly build alliances through affiliative interactions such as grooming and playing. However, they also observed that these affiliative interactions were regularly interrupted by a third individual. Although in about 50 % of the cases these interventions were successful and broke up the two affiliating ravens, intervening can be potentially risky when the two affiliating ravens team up and chase away the intervening individual.
Interestingly, the researchers found that these interventions did not occur at random. Specifically ravens that already have an alliance tend to interrupt the affiliative interactions of those individuals that are in the process of establishing one. "Because of their already established power, allied ravens can afford such risky strategies", explains lead-author Jorg Massen: "They specifically target those ravens that are about to establish a new alliance, and might thereby prevent them from becoming future competitors through a divide and rule strategy."
Massen furthermore underlines that at the time of intervention the birds that are trying to establish an alliance are no threat yet to the already allied ravens. "It thus seems that the ravens keep track of the relationships of others and have a keen understanding of when to intervene in affiliative interactions and when not; i.e. not when these are just loose flirts, but also not when the alliance is already established and it is already too late", says Jorg Massen. This is the first time that such a sophisticated political maneuver has been described in animals other than humans.
INFORMATION:
Publication in "Current Biology"
Massen, J.J.M., Szipl, G., Spreafico, M. & Bugnyar, T (2014). Ravens intervene in others' bonding attempts. Current Biology. Published online October 30th, 2014.
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2014.09.073
Scientific contact
Jorg J.M. Massen, PhD
Department of Cognitive Biology
University of Vienna
1090 Vienna, Althanstraße 14
T +43-699-1131 0182
jorg.massen@univie.ac.at
Press contact
Mag. Alexandra Frey
Press office, University of Vienna
Research and Teaching
1010 Vienna, Universitätsring 1
T +43-1-4277-175 33
M +43-664-602 77-175 33
alexandra.frey@univie.ac.at
The University of Vienna, founded in 1365, is one of the oldest and largest universities in Europe. About 9,500 employees, 6,700 of who are academic employees, work at 15 faculties and four centres. This makes the University of Vienna Austria's largest research and education institution. About 92,000 national and international students are currently enrolled at the University of Vienna. With more than 180 degree programmes, the University offers the most diverse range of studies in Austria. The University of Vienna is also a major provider of continuing education. In 2015, the Alma Mater Rudolphina Vindobonensis celebrates its 650th Anniversary. http://www.univie.ac.at
'Divide and rule' -- raven politics
2014-10-31
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