Tit wit: environmental and genetic drivers of cognitive variation along an urbanization gradient
Cognitive abilities can promote acclimation to life in cities. However, the genetic versus environmental drivers of cognition have rarely been studied in the wild and there exists a major knowledge gap concerning the role of cognition in adaptation to urban contexts. We evaluate cognitive variation...
| Autores principales: | , , , , |
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| Formato: | Artículo |
| Lenguaje: | Inglés |
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Springer Nature
2025
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| Acceso en línea: | https://repositorio.catie.ac.cr/handle/11554/13803 |
| _version_ | 1854966291253690368 |
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| author | Thompson, Megan J. Gervais, Laura Bharath, Dhanya Perrier, Charles y otros más |
| author_browse | Bharath, Dhanya Gervais, Laura Perrier, Charles Thompson, Megan J. y otros más |
| author_facet | Thompson, Megan J. Gervais, Laura Bharath, Dhanya Perrier, Charles y otros más |
| author_sort | Thompson, Megan J. |
| collection | Repositorio CATIE |
| description | Cognitive abilities can promote acclimation to life in cities. However, the genetic versus environmental drivers of cognition have rarely been studied in the wild and there exists a major knowledge gap concerning the role of cognition in adaptation to urban contexts. We evaluate cognitive variation in wild great tits (Parus major; N = 393) along an urban gradient, and estimate the genetic basis of this variation using a combination of a common garden experiment, quantitative genetic analysis, and genome-wide association study. Specifically, we measure inhibitory control abilities which affect how animals respond to novel challenges. We find that wild urban and forest tits do not clearly differ in inhibitory control performance (number of errors or the latency to escape) during a motor detour task; a result that was consistent in birds from urban and forest origins reared in a common garden (N = 73) despite average performance differing between wild and captive birds. Cognitive performance was repeatable (R = 0.35–0.38) and showed low to moderate heritability in the wild (h2 = 0.16–0.28, but both estimates had high uncertainty). We identified five SNPs that were associated with the number of errors during the task, with two of these SNPs linked to genes related to serotonergic and dopaminergic systems that are known to play important roles in cognition. Altogether, our study finds limited evidence that inhibitory control abilities have evolved under novel urban contexts, yet reveals some evidence for a genetic basis of this cognitive trait in great tits. |
| format | Artículo |
| id | RepoCATIE13803 |
| institution | Centro Agronómico Tropical de Investigación y Enseñanza |
| language | Inglés |
| publishDate | 2025 |
| publishDateRange | 2025 |
| publishDateSort | 2025 |
| publisher | Springer Nature |
| publisherStr | Springer Nature |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | RepoCATIE138032025-09-04T17:20:30Z Tit wit: environmental and genetic drivers of cognitive variation along an urbanization gradient Thompson, Megan J. Gervais, Laura Bharath, Dhanya Perrier, Charles y otros más Genecología||genecology||undefined||génécologie Cognitive development Cognition Cognitive control Behavioral genetics Sede Central ODS 15 - Vida de ecosistemas terrestres Cognitive abilities can promote acclimation to life in cities. However, the genetic versus environmental drivers of cognition have rarely been studied in the wild and there exists a major knowledge gap concerning the role of cognition in adaptation to urban contexts. We evaluate cognitive variation in wild great tits (Parus major; N = 393) along an urban gradient, and estimate the genetic basis of this variation using a combination of a common garden experiment, quantitative genetic analysis, and genome-wide association study. Specifically, we measure inhibitory control abilities which affect how animals respond to novel challenges. We find that wild urban and forest tits do not clearly differ in inhibitory control performance (number of errors or the latency to escape) during a motor detour task; a result that was consistent in birds from urban and forest origins reared in a common garden (N = 73) despite average performance differing between wild and captive birds. Cognitive performance was repeatable (R = 0.35–0.38) and showed low to moderate heritability in the wild (h2 = 0.16–0.28, but both estimates had high uncertainty). We identified five SNPs that were associated with the number of errors during the task, with two of these SNPs linked to genes related to serotonergic and dopaminergic systems that are known to play important roles in cognition. Altogether, our study finds limited evidence that inhibitory control abilities have evolved under novel urban contexts, yet reveals some evidence for a genetic basis of this cognitive trait in great tits. 2025-08-27T14:09:54Z 2025-08-27T14:09:54Z 2025-06-03 Artículo https://repositorio.catie.ac.cr/handle/11554/13803 openAccess en Animal Cognition https://doi.org/10.1007/s10071-025-01962-1 20 páginas application/pdf Springer Nature |
| spellingShingle | Genecología||genecology||undefined||génécologie Cognitive development Cognition Cognitive control Behavioral genetics Sede Central ODS 15 - Vida de ecosistemas terrestres Thompson, Megan J. Gervais, Laura Bharath, Dhanya Perrier, Charles y otros más Tit wit: environmental and genetic drivers of cognitive variation along an urbanization gradient |
| title | Tit wit: environmental and genetic drivers of cognitive variation along an urbanization gradient |
| title_full | Tit wit: environmental and genetic drivers of cognitive variation along an urbanization gradient |
| title_fullStr | Tit wit: environmental and genetic drivers of cognitive variation along an urbanization gradient |
| title_full_unstemmed | Tit wit: environmental and genetic drivers of cognitive variation along an urbanization gradient |
| title_short | Tit wit: environmental and genetic drivers of cognitive variation along an urbanization gradient |
| title_sort | tit wit environmental and genetic drivers of cognitive variation along an urbanization gradient |
| topic | Genecología||genecology||undefined||génécologie Cognitive development Cognition Cognitive control Behavioral genetics Sede Central ODS 15 - Vida de ecosistemas terrestres |
| url | https://repositorio.catie.ac.cr/handle/11554/13803 |
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