ORCID Profile
0000-0003-3829-9178
Current Organisation
James Cook University
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Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 03-12-2020
DOI: 10.1007/S10071-019-01334-6
Abstract: Innovation is the ability to use a new behaviour, or use an existing behaviour in a new context. Innovation, as an aspect of behavioural flexibility, could be important for allowing animals to cope with rapid environmental changes. Surprisingly, few studies have focused on how innovation ability is affected by task complexity. We investigated innovation ability across multiple tasks of varying complexity in a native Australian rodent, the fawn-footed mosaic-tailed rat (Melomys cervinipes). We predicted that mosaic-tailed rats would be capable of innovating because they live in complex habitats and can exploit disturbed and changing environments. However, we also predicted that the success rate of innovating would decrease as task complexity increased. Mosaic-tailed rats were exposed to six novel problems: cylinder, matchbox, obstruction test, pillar, tile and lever (the last three presented in a Trixie dog activity board), which represented increasing complexity. We counted the number of in iduals that could solve at least one task, compared in iduals for solving efficiency and latency to solve, and compared the solving success of each task. All mosaic-tailed rats could innovate. However, solving success differed between in iduals, with some solving every task and others only solving one. Solving success rate was significantly higher in the simplest task (pillar) compared to the most complicated task (lever). There was no effect of sex or s ling condition on innovation. This study is the first to demonstrate innovation ability across task complexity in an Australian rodent and provides promising avenues for future studies of innovation.
Publisher: MDPI AG
Date: 30-12-2021
DOI: 10.3390/ANI12010082
Abstract: Animals can respond physiologically, such as by adjusting glucocorticoid hormone concentrations, to sudden environmental challenges. These physiological changes can then affect behavioural and cognitive responses. While the relationships between adrenocortical activity and behaviour and cognition are well documented, results are equivocal, suggesting species-specific responses. We investigated whether adrenocortical activity, measured using corticosterone metabolite concentration, was related to problem solving in an Australian rodent, the fawn-footed mosaic-tailed rat (Melomys cervinipes). Mosaic-tailed rats live in complex environments that are prone to disturbance, suggesting a potential need to solve novel problems, and have been found to show relationships between physiology and other behaviours. We measured problem solving using five food-baited puzzles (matchbox and cylinder in the home cage, and activity board with pillars to push, tiles to slide and levers to lift in an open field), and an escape-motivated obstruction task in a light/dark box. Faecal s les were collected from in iduals during routine cage cleaning. Adrenocortical activity was evaluated non-invasively by measuring faecal corticosterone metabolites using an enzyme immunoassay, which was biochemically and biologically validated. Despite varying over time, adrenocortical activity was not significantly related to problem solving success or time spent interacting for any task. However, as adrenocortical activity is reflective of multiple physiological processes, including stress and metabolism, future studies should consider how other measures of physiology are also linked to problem solving.
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 28-08-2022
DOI: 10.1007/S10071-021-01556-7
Abstract: Problem solving is important for survival, allowing animals to access novel food resources or escape from predators. It was originally thought to rely on an animal's intelligence however, studies examining the relationship between in idual cognitive ability and problem solving performance show mixed results, and studies are often restricted to only one cognitive and one problem solving task. We investigated the relationship between general cognitive ability and problem solving across multiple tasks in the fawn-footed mosaic-tailed rat Melomys cervinipes. We measured general cognitive ability across different domains (memory in an odour learning association task, recognition in a novel object recognition task, size discrimination using different sized pieces of food, and learning across multiple presentations of a food-baited activity board). We also measured problem solving across different contexts (food-baited puzzle boxes in home cage, obstruction task, and food-baited activity board in a novel arena). Mosaic-tailed rats showed a general cognitive ability, with average problem solving latency, memory ability, and learning in the tile task being correlated. As such, in iduals that were able to remember an association and learned to solve the tile task solved the problems faster than in iduals that could not remember or learn. Our results suggest that problem solving in mosaic-tailed rats likely relies on some forms of simple cognition, particularly memory, but could also depend on other traits, such as an in idual's persistence.
Publisher: CSIRO Publishing
Date: 2021
DOI: 10.1071/AM20037
Abstract: The fawn-footed mosaic-tailed rat (Melomys cervinipes) is a common Australian rainforest rodent however, little is known about the growth or behavioural development of in iduals of this species. We raised mosaic-tailed rats in captivity to assess the growth and behavioural development of pups from birth until weaning. Pups developed quickly compared with some other Australian species, and there were no significant differences in growth between males and females, except for anogenital distance. The auditory meatus was open by Postnatal Day 5, and eyes were fully opened by Postnatal Day 9. All behaviours, including righting, locomotion, negative geotaxis, climbing and grip reflex, were fully developed by Postnatal Day 6. These results suggest that mosaic-tailed rats are semiprecocial in their physical and behavioural development compared with some native Australian rodent species that are found in arid environments. As females produce few, relatively well-developed young, the population has a low intrinsic rate of natural increase. This may, however, be offset by mosaic-tailed rats producing more litters per year. Understanding the biology of mosaic-tailed rats in general could provide insights into how rarer precocial species might struggle to increase in population size under increasing disturbances.
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 26-06-2022
DOI: 10.1002/JEZ.2637
Abstract: Innovative problem solving is thought to be a flexible trait that allows animals to adjust to changing or challenging environmental conditions. However, it is not known how problem solving develops during an animal's early life, or whether it may have a heritable component. We investigated whether maternal genetic and nongenetic effects influenced problem‐solving ability in a native Australian rodent, the fawn‐footed mosaic‐tailed rat Melomys cervinipes . We measured direct (time spent grooming and huddling), indirect (time spent nesting), and total amount of maternal care received across pup development (postnatal Days 1–13). We measured problem solving in juveniles using matchbox tasks, and in mothers and adult offspring using six tasks of varying complexity (matchbox, cylinder, obstruction, pillar, tile, and lever tasks). We found no relationship between any maternal care measures and problem‐solving abilities across multiple tests, suggesting limited (if any) maternal nongenetic effects. We also found that, as shown by low heritability estimates, problem solving only had a small heritable component in some tasks, but this was nonsignificant and requires further investigation. These results suggest that problem solving is unlikely to be constrained by maternal effects experienced during early development, and is, instead, more likely to be influenced by other factors (e.g., experience) later in an in idual's lifetime.
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 11-05-2021
DOI: 10.1111/ETH.13166
Abstract: The relationship between an animal's personality and its problem solving ability has become a popular topic of investigation. However, results are conflicting, suggesting that these relationships may be species‐specific. We investigated these relationships in a native Australian rodent, the fawn‐footed mosaic‐tailed rat ( Melomys cervinipes ). We predicted that more exploratory and less anxious mosaic‐tailed rats would be better problem solvers (e.g. faster to solve the problem) as they would interact with the puzzles more and would be more willing to engage with the task. We assessed personality across two contexts (exploration in an open field and novel object test, and anxiety under simulated predation risk in a light/dark box) and over time (three repetitions). We measured problem solving using two food‐baited puzzle boxes (matchbox and cylinder), a Trixie Dog Activity Board with three problems (pillars, tiles and levers) and an obstruction task. In idual mosaic‐tailed rats showed consistent in idual differences in personality, but not problem solving ability. Furthermore, we found a positive relationship between personality and problem solving ability, with more exploratory in iduals solving more problems, and solving problems faster, than less exploratory in iduals. Exploratory in iduals could be better problem solvers because they are more willing to interact with objects and are less neophobic than less exploratory in iduals. However, less exploratory in iduals still persist in the population, possibly due to differences in cognitive abilities, such as discrimination or recognition, that allow them to compensate for poorer problem solving abilities.
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 12-10-2023
DOI: 10.1111/AEC.13439
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 18-11-2023
DOI: 10.1007/S10071-022-01718-1
Abstract: Problem solving ability is affected by many factors, including physiology, personality, and cognition. However, how age and experience influence problem-solving ability during development is harder to untangle. We tested how age and experience affected problem solving in a native Australian rodent, the fawn-footed mosaic-tailed rat Melomys cervinipes. Juveniles were ided into two groups (different ages at start of testing) and then received a food-baited cardboard matchbox every 10 days for a total of three tests. We compared the problem-solving ability of in iduals from both groups, which allowed us to separate the effects of age and experience. Juveniles with more experience solved the task faster than juveniles with less experience. Furthermore, inexperienced older juveniles interacted with the problems more than inexperienced younger juveniles. Previous solving experience may be important for short-term solving success, while age, in the absence of experience, might be associated with increased exploration, leading to increased investigation of novel problems. Previous experience at manipulating objects generally may also be important for problem-solving success, which likely provides an advantage as resources and habitats change seasonally and annually.
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 07-12-2023
DOI: 10.1111/AEC.13270
Abstract: While many species of animals can solve food‐baited problems, most studies are conducted in captivity, which may not reflect the natural behavioural and cognitive abilities of wild animals. As few studies have explored problem solving of Australian animals generally, we investigated the problem solving abilities of native Australian species in natural rainforest in the Wet Tropics of Queensland. We baited multiple types of puzzles (matchbox task, cylinder task, and tile and lever tasks on a Trixie Dog Activity Board) with different food types (seeds, fruit, sardines) and placed the puzzles in front of trail cameras. We noted the species captured on camera, whether or not in iduals interacted with the puzzles, the number of interactions with puzzles, and whether or not different animals solved them. We found that seven species from multiple taxa (mammals, birds, reptiles) could solve food‐baited problems in the wild, providing the first evidence of problem solving in these native species. As problem solving may help animals cope with anthropogenic threats, these results provide some insights into which Wet Tropics species may potentially be more vulnerable and which ones might be better at coping with changing conditions.
Publisher: MDPI AG
Date: 18-03-2021
DOI: 10.3390/ANI11030866
Abstract: Problem solving, the act of overcoming an obstacle to obtain an incentive, has been studied in a wide variety of taxa, and is often based on simple strategies such as trial-and-error learning, instead of higher-order cognitive processes, such as insight. There are large variations in problem solving abilities between species, populations and in iduals, and this variation could arise due to differences in development, and other intrinsic (genetic, neuroendocrine and aging) and extrinsic (environmental) factors. However, experimental studies investigating the ontogeny of problem solving are lacking. Here, we provide a comprehensive review of problem solving from an ontogenetic perspective. The focus is to highlight aspects of problem solving that have been overlooked in the current literature, and highlight why developmental influences of problem-solving ability are particularly important avenues for future investigation. We argue that the ultimate outcome of solving a problem is underpinned by interacting cognitive, physiological and behavioural components, all of which are affected by ontogenetic factors. We emphasise that, due to the large number of confounding ontogenetic influences, an in idual-centric approach is important for a full understanding of the development of problem solving.
No related grants have been discovered for Misha Rowell.