Animal Cognition in an Urbanised World
dc.contributor.author | Lee, VE | |
dc.contributor.author | Thornton, A | |
dc.date.accessioned | 2021-04-15T13:55:32Z | |
dc.date.issued | 2021-03-04 | |
dc.description.abstract | Explaining how animals respond to an increasingly urbanised world is a major challenge for evolutionary biologists. Urban environments often present animals with novel problems that differ from those encountered in their evolutionary past. To navigate these rapidly changing habitats successfully, animals may need to adjust their behaviour flexibly over relatively short timescales. These behavioural changes, in turn, may be facilitated by an ability to acquire, store, and process information from the environment. The question of how cognitive abilities allow animals to avoid threats and exploit resources (or constrain their ability to do so) is attracting increasing research interest, with a growing number of studies investigating cognitive and behavioural differences between urban-dwelling animals and their non-urban counterparts. In this review we consider why such differences might arise, focusing on the informational challenges faced by animals living in urban environments, and how different cognitive abilities can assist in overcoming these challenges. We focus largely on birds, as avian taxa have been the subject of most research to date, but discuss work in other species where relevant. We also address the potential consequences of cognitive variation at the individual and species level. For instance, do urban environments select for, or influence the development of, particular cognitive abilities? Are individuals or species with particular cognitive phenotypes more likely to become established in urban habitats? How do other factors, such as social behaviour and individual personality, interact with cognition to influence behaviour in urban environments? The aim of this review is to synthesise current knowledge and identify key avenues for future research, in order to improve our understanding of the ecological and evolutionary consequences of urbanisation. | en_GB |
dc.description.sponsorship | Human Frontiers Science Program | en_GB |
dc.identifier.citation | Vol. 9, article 633947 | en_GB |
dc.identifier.doi | 10.3389/fevo.2021.633947 | |
dc.identifier.grantnumber | RG0049/2017 | en_GB |
dc.identifier.uri | http://hdl.handle.net/10871/125372 | |
dc.language.iso | en | en_GB |
dc.publisher | Frontiers Media | en_GB |
dc.rights | © 2021 Lee and Thornton. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms. | en_GB |
dc.subject | urban | en_GB |
dc.subject | cognition | en_GB |
dc.subject | learning | en_GB |
dc.subject | plasticity | en_GB |
dc.subject | adaptation | en_GB |
dc.title | Animal Cognition in an Urbanised World | en_GB |
dc.type | Article | en_GB |
dc.date.available | 2021-04-15T13:55:32Z | |
dc.description | This is the final version. Available on open access from Frontiers Media via the DOI in this record | en_GB |
dc.identifier.eissn | 2296-701X | |
dc.identifier.journal | Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution | en_GB |
dc.rights.uri | https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ | en_GB |
dcterms.dateAccepted | 2021-02-15 | |
exeter.funder | ::Biotechnology & Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) | en_GB |
exeter.funder | ::Human Frontier Science Programme | en_GB |
rioxxterms.funder | Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council | en_GB |
rioxxterms.funder | Natural Environment Research Council | en_GB |
rioxxterms.identifier.project | BB/H021817/2 | en_GB |
rioxxterms.identifier.project | NE/L002434/1 | en_GB |
rioxxterms.version | VoR | en_GB |
rioxxterms.licenseref.startdate | 2021-03-04 | |
rioxxterms.type | Journal Article/Review | en_GB |
refterms.dateFCD | 2021-04-15T13:50:07Z | |
refterms.versionFCD | VoR | |
refterms.dateFOA | 2021-04-15T13:55:43Z | |
refterms.panel | A | en_GB |
rioxxterms.funder.project | 9f708b90-bb66-4440-ac9a-d5b7d569a9a4 | en_GB |
rioxxterms.funder.project | d6f17585-c97b-44a2-99eb-c6cb875eed5a | en_GB |
Files in this item
This item appears in the following Collection(s)
Except where otherwise noted, this item's licence is described as © 2021 Lee and Thornton. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.