Effects of Neonatal Handling on Play Behavior and Fear Towards a Predator Odor in Juvenile Rats (Rattus norvegicus)
The effects of brief daily separation, also known as “handling,” during the first 2 weeks of life on play behavior and fearfulness toward a predatory odor were assessed in juvenile rats. Handled rats were more playful than nonhandled control rats, and while handling had no effect on the direct response of these rats toward a […]
Hormones and paternal behavior in vertebrates
This review examines the influence of hormonal stimulation on paternal care in selected species of fish, birds and mammals. Correlational studies of hormonal changes and the occurrence of paternal behavior as well as experimental studies are considered. Understanding the influence of hormones on paternal behavior is complicated by whether the species studied shows maternal, paternal […]
Transgenerational Effects of Variable Foraging Demand Stress in Female Bonnet Macaques
Stress coping is an important part of mammalian life, influencing somatic and mental health, social integration, and reproductive success. The experience of early psychological stress helps shape lifelong stress coping strategies. Recent studies have shown that the effects of early stress may not be restricted to the affected generation, but may also be transmitted to […]
Social buffering in a bird
The presence of a conspecific can ameliorate an individual’s stress response. This social buffering is known to be widespread in social mammals but the capacity of birds to act as social buffers has not yet been determined. We previously demonstrated that domestic hens, Gallus gallus domesticus, show socially mediated arousal when watching their chicks receiving […]
Effects of maternal vocalisations on the domestic chick stress response
Although natural brooding is not commercially feasible, there is great potential to simulate aspects of maternal care to improve the welfare of farmed domestic chicks. Our previous studies showed that the presence of calm broody hens can buffer mild stress responses in chicks, although the presence of more aroused broody hens has less of a […]
Oxytocin and vasopressin enhance responsiveness to infant stimuli in adult marmosets
The neuropeptides oxytocin (OT) and arginine-vasopressin (AVP) have been implicated in modulating sex-specific responses to offspring in a variety of uniparental and biparental rodent species. Despite the large body of research in rodents, the effects of these hormones in biparental primates are less understood. Marmoset monkeys (Callithrix jacchus) belong to a clade of primates with […]