Speakers > Sabrina Ravel
Sabrina Ravel INT, France Evolution of performance during acquisition of a cognitive task in a group of related common marmosets (Callithrix jacchus) In the wild, common marmosets generally live in family groups with a breeding pair and their offspring, who will become helpers after their growth. However, this social structure cannot always be preserved in a laboratory environment. This study aims to decipher the relationship between the social organization of a group and individual performance in a cognitive task. The performance of 5 related female marmosets was evaluated. A freely accessible device mounted on the homecage of the animals allowed cognitive tests to be performed without separating individuals from their social group. Each animal was identified by a chip placed on a collar, the detection of which triggered the task with a personalized difficulty level. Pairs of visual stimuli were presented on a touchscreen in a pseudo-random order. In each pair, the animals had to determine by trial-and-error the rewarded stimulus. Once acquired, the contingency was reversed and the time to acquire the new association was measured. The hierarchical organization of the group was determined based on observations of access to resources (food, resting area, testing device). Daily performance (correct trials, errors, omissions) was measured for each animal. We found high heterogeneity in the performance on the task among individuals, demonstrating variability in learning and in cognitive flexibility. Ultimately, our aim is to evaluate the influence of group composition on performance in different cognitive tasks. |
