Department of Zoology and Physiology, University of Wyoming, Laramie, WY 82071, USA.
Program in Ecology, University of Wyoming, Laramie, WY 82071, USA.
J Exp Biol. 2022 Sep 15;225(18). doi: 10.1242/jeb.243726. Epub 2022 Sep 22.
Cognitive abilities, such as learning and flexibility, are hypothesized to aid behavioral adaptation to urbanization. Although growing evidence suggests that cognition may indeed facilitate persistence in urban environments, we currently lack knowledge of the cognitive abilities of many urban taxa. Recent methodological advances, including radio frequency identification (RFID), have extended automated cognitive testing into the field but have yet to be applied to a diversity of taxa. Here, we used an RFID-enabled operant conditioning device to assess the habituation, learning and cognitive flexibility of a wild population of raccoons (Procyon lotor). We examined how several biological and behavioral traits influenced participation and performance in testing. We then compared the cognitive performance of wild raccoons tested in natural conditions with that of wild-caught raccoons tested in captivity from a previous study. In natural conditions, juvenile raccoons were more likely to habituate to the testing device, but performed worse in serial reversal learning, compared with adults. We also found that docile raccoons were more likely to learn how to operate the device in natural conditions, which suggests a relationship between emotional reactivity and cognitive ability in raccoons. Although raccoons in both captive and natural conditions demonstrated rapid associative learning and flexibility, raccoons in captive conditions generally performed better, likely owing to the heightened vigilance and social interference experienced by raccoons in natural conditions. Our results have important implications for future research on urban carnivores and cognition in field settings, as well as our understanding of behavioral adaptation to urbanization and coexistence with urban wildlife.
认知能力，如学习和灵活性，被假设有助于行为适应城市化。尽管越来越多的证据表明认知确实可以促进在城市环境中的持续存在，但我们目前还缺乏对许多城市分类群认知能力的了解。最近的方法学进展，包括射频识别（RFID），已经将自动化认知测试扩展到了野外，但尚未应用于多种分类群。在这里，我们使用 RFID 启用的操作性条件设备来评估野生浣熊（Procyon lotor）种群的习惯形成、学习和认知灵活性。我们研究了几种生物和行为特征如何影响测试中的参与和表现。然后，我们将在自然条件下测试的野生浣熊的认知表现与之前在圈养中测试的野生浣熊的认知表现进行了比较。在自然条件下，与成年浣熊相比，幼年浣熊更容易习惯测试设备，但在序列反转学习中表现更差。我们还发现，温顺的浣熊在自然条件下更有可能学会操作设备，这表明浣熊的情绪反应性和认知能力之间存在关系。尽管在圈养和自然条件下的浣熊都表现出快速的联想学习和灵活性，但在圈养条件下的浣熊通常表现更好，这可能是由于在自然条件下浣熊的警惕性和社会干扰增加所致。我们的研究结果对未来在野外研究城市食肉动物和认知以及理解对城市化的行为适应和与城市野生动物共存具有重要意义。
