Hanson M T, Coss R G
Department of Psychology, University of California, Davis, USA.
J Comp Psychol. 1997 Jun;111(2):174-84. doi: 10.1037/0735-7036.111.2.174.
The antipredator behavior of juvenile and adult California ground squirrels (Spermophilus beecheyi) was videotaped in Experiment 1 to measure the effects of age on assessment of a briefly presented live dog and a model red-tailed hawk (Buteo jamaicensis) in simulated flight. Adult squirrels treated the hawk as more dangerous than the dog, whereas juvenile squirrels showed less differentiation of the predator types. Juvenile squirrels also perceived the dog as a more immediate danger than adult squirrels did. For Experiment 2, the red-tailed hawk model was compared with models of a nonthreatening turkey vulture (Cathartes aura) and crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos). Neither age class differentiated the avian models; however, the adult squirrels treated these birds as more threatening than the juvenile squirrels did. Both studies suggest that learning may contribute to predator assessment.
在实验1中，对幼年和成年加利福尼亚地松鼠（贝氏黄鼠）的反捕食行为进行了录像，以测量年龄对评估一只短暂出现的活狗和一只模拟飞行中的红尾鹰（赤肩鵟）的影响。成年松鼠认为鹰比狗更危险，而幼年松鼠对捕食者类型的区分较少。幼年松鼠也比成年松鼠更将狗视为直接的危险。在实验2中，将红尾鹰模型与无威胁的火鸡秃鹫（红头美洲鹫）和乌鸦（短嘴鸦）模型进行了比较。两个年龄组都没有区分鸟类模型；然而，成年松鼠比幼年松鼠更将这些鸟视为有威胁的。两项研究都表明，学习可能有助于捕食者评估。
