These Wild Dogs Vote by
Sneezing
“…According
to a new study conducted by an international team of researchers working at the
Botswana Predator Conservation Trust, African wild dogs have developed a very
democratic system of voting to decide whether to head out on hunting ventures…
The
study’s lead author, Dr. Neil Jordan, a research fellow at the University of
New South Wales & Taronga Conservation Society Australia, explained…that
these dogs gather at highly energetic greeting ceremonies, otherwise known as
social rallies,after rest periods before they move off together again.
For the
study, which was just published the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B,
researchers watched 5 packs at 68 of these rallies in Botswana, which would end
either with the dogs going back to rest, or moving out to go hunting.
‘I
wanted to better understand this collective behaviour, & noticed the dogs
were sneezing while preparing to go,’ said Dr. Jordan. ‘The more sneezes that
occurred, the more likely it was that the pack moved off & started hunting.
The sneeze acts like a type of voting system.’
Even
more interesting is that not all votes were found to carry the same weight.
Researchers also found that if dogs other than the dominant male or female
initiated the vote, more sneezes were needed – usually at least 10 – before
everybody would head out…
According
to National Geographic, the study’s authors also hope it will raise more
interest in African wild dogs, who are listed as Endangered on the IUCN Red
List of Threatened Species…
‘They’re
absolutely gorgeous animals focused on cooperation & their pack family
unit,” said co-author, Reena Walker of Brown University. “The more people who
are aware [of] how amazing these animals are, the better.’”
Alicia
Graef
Sept.
6/ 2017
care2.com
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